On Israel trip, US Joint Chiefs chair meets with defense minister, IDF chief

“The United States remains unwavering in its commitment to enduring peace and stability in the region,” the Joint Staff spokesman said.

By JNS

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine met with Israel Katz, the Israeli defense minister, in Israel on Saturday.

“We discussed the close strategic and operational cooperation between the Israel Defense Forces and the U.S. military, a partnership that is shaping the new reality in the Middle East,” Katz stated.

“We spoke about the challenges across the various fronts, first and foremost Gaza, and our commitment to bringing all the hostages home, demilitarizing Gaza and dismantling Hamas,” the Israeli minister added.

In photos that Katz shared, the U.S. Air Force general, who appears without a tie, holds a notebook and pen in his hands as he listens to the Israeli minister. Katz wears a tie and a yellow hostage pin.

The Israeli military shared a photo of the U.S. military leader and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir and their respective staffs, all in uniform, in a meeting on Friday. Caine was an “official guest” of Zamir, the IDF said.

“During the visit, the general and the chief of the general staff held a joint situational assessment, during which they discussed regional challenges, focusing primarily on the situation in Gaza and future challenges in both nearby and distant arenas,” per the IDF.

Joseph Holstead, the Joint Staff spokesman, stated that Caine and Zamir “discussed regional developments across multiple fronts, coordination through the Civil-Military Coordination Center in Kiryat Gat and efforts to sustain the Gaza ceasefire and prevent further escalation.”

The two “reaffirmed the strength of the U.S.-Israel defense partnership and emphasized the importance of continued cooperation to deter shared threats and ensure humanitarian assistance reaches civilians in need,” the Joint Staff spokesman said.

He added that Caine saw “areas near the Gaza Strip, spoke with international liaisons to the CMCC and received operational updates from IDF senior leadership, including a briefing from Maj. Gen. Yaki Dolf, the IDF’s liaison to the CMCC.”

“The United States remains unwavering in its commitment to enduring peace and stability in the region,” he said.

Caine and Pete Hegseth, now the U.S. war secretary but then called the defense secretary, hosted Katz at the Pentagon in July, and Katz hosted Hegseth in Israel last month.