Trump UN nominee backs Israeli claims of biblical rights to West Bank
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Elise Stefanik’s comments at Senate hearing align her with Israeli far right and highlight US-UN rifts over Israel policy. Donald Trump’s nominee for US ambassador to the United Nations has endorsed Israeli claims of biblical rights to the entire West Bank during a Senate confirmation hearing, aligning herself with positions that could complicate diplomatic efforts in the Middle East.
The New York congresswoman Elise Stefanik, a Republican, was confronted on Tuesday over her backing of a position that aligns her with the Israeli far right, including Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich and former national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
“You told me that, yes, you shared that view,” the Democratic Maryland senator Chris Van Hollen said during questioning. “Is that your view today?”. “Yes,” Stefanik said. Stefanik’s confirmation hearing highlighted the rifts between the US and UN over Israel policy – of which the US is the UN’s single largest funder. The US – which houses the secretariat in midtown New York City – pays about $3.6bn, or 22%, of the UN’s regular budget, with China second at 15.25% and Japan roughly at 8%.
And while the position puts Stefanik at odds with longstanding international consensus and multiple UN security council resolutions regarding Israeli settlements in occupied territories, it remains sharply in line with widespread Trump administration posturing.
Mike Huckabee, Trump’s ambassador to Israel, echoed similar sentiments over Israel’s sovereignty, declaring “there’s no such thing as a West Bank” during a 2017 visit to Israel. Huckabee has also dismissed Palestinian identity entirely, once claiming “there’s no such thing as a Palestinian”.
