Former President Barack Obama, standing with then-VP Joe Biden, delivers remarks in the White House after the Iran nuclear deal is reached, July 14, 2015. (AP/Andrew Harnik, Pool)
Friedman called the U.S. position on the Iranian nuclear program “the most consequential issue of the election.”
By Josh Plank, World Israel News
David Friedman, U.S. ambassador to Israel, said Sunday that if Democrat candidate Joe Biden wins the November presidential election, it would be bad for the Middle East and would undermine important progress made under President Donald Trump.
The ambassador made the statements at his home in Herzliya in an interview with the United Arab Emirates’ Al-Ain News.
Friedman called the U.S. position on the Iranian nuclear program “the most consequential issue of the election.”
“Joe Biden was part of the Obama administration which negotiated and implemented the Iran deal, something that President Trump — and I share his view — thinks was the worst international deal the United States has ever entered into,” Friedman said.
He said the Iran deal created a pathway for Iran to gain a nuclear weapon, did nothing to restrain Iran from building ballistic missiles, and did nothing to stop Iran from supporting terrorists throughout the region.
Friedman said he thinks the U.S. is in “a very good place” with the current sanctions that have been imposed against Iran.
“If we continue on this path, we think Iran will ultimately have no choice but to end its malign activity,” he said.
“I’d hate to think that a new administration would undermine that,” Friedman said, “but regrettably if Biden wins, I think they might.”
He said that were a Biden-Harris administration to support the same position as the Obama-Biden administration, there would be very drastic changes regarding Iran.
He said it would be bad for the entire region, including Israel, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait.
Friedman spoke positively about the recently signed Abraham Accords, and said that he expects more Arab countries to join the UAE and Bahrain in making peace agreements with Israel.
“I definitely think that if President Trump wins, there will be many opportunities,” he said.
According to Friedman, some Arab countries are waiting to see the results of the elections to develop their strategies, and if Trump wins, they will make peace.
In August, Biden’s running mate Kamala Harris said that if elected, “Our administration will hold Iran’s government accountable and rejoin a diplomatic agreement if Iran comes back into compliance. And we will work with our allies, of course, to strengthen the Iran deal and push back Iran’s other destabilizing actions.”
In July, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley warned that a Biden victory in November would undo a lot of the progress achieved under the Trump administration.
“For all the progress that we made in terms of Israel, in terms of the Middle East, in terms of really having a voice for America and for Israel – I hate the thought that if Biden comes in all of that goes away,” Haley said.
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