Joe Biden has been a “difficult partner” for Israel since Oct. 7, according to a former Marine chief of staff, who called the President’s transfer of U.S. forces to the region a “symbolic” move.
On Sunday, the Pentagon announced that it would be transferring troops and an anti-missile defense system to Israel. However, as Israel contends with missile attacks from Iran and its proxy Hezbollah, Biden has come under fire for his criticism of Israel and for failing to demonstrate adequate support for the state.
“Biden has shifted around, he’s waffled,” Colonel Brendan Kearney told the BBC on Monday morning.
“He’s being a very, very difficult partner at a time where one of our most erstwhile allies is doing their very, very best to not only defend themselves but also to seek what I think is appropriate revenge and retribution against the atrocities that have been put upon the Israeli state.”
Kearney, who previously served as Chief of Staff at Marine Forces Europe, criticized Biden for what he called “public caveats” when discussing U.S. support for Israel, and for “beating up the Israeli Government” over its military strategy.
Newsweek has contacted the Biden White House for a response to Kearney’s statements.
U.S. President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office at the White House on July 25, 2024 in Washington, DC. Since Oct. 7, Biden has criticized Israel’s “indiscriminate” bombing of the Gaza Strip, and urged the country to exercise restraint in its response to Hamas’s attack.
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Following Oct. 7 and the subsequent onset of the country’s attacks on Gaza, Biden has repeatedly urged Israel to exercise restraint in its operations against Hamas.
A few days after the attacks, Biden told Israel to not be “consumed by rage,” and cautioned it against repeating the “mistakes” made by the U.S. following 9/11.
The president has since warned Netanyahu that his country risks losing international support thanks to its “indiscriminate bombing” of civilians in the Gaza Strip, where the death toll has recently surpassed 40,000.
On Sunday, the Pentagon said that it will be sending a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-ballistic missile defense system to Israel, to help shore up the country’s air defenses following Iran’s recent missile barrage. 100 troops will also be deployed to help operate the system.
Kearney called this transfer “symbolic,” but said that it would help to address apparent gaps in Israel’s air defenses.
On Sunday, a Hezbollah drone attack struck an army base in central Israel, killing four Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers and injuring dozens of others, according to the IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi.
However, Kearney said that, over the past year, Biden’s support for the country was insufficient, and said that only “complete and total support of Israel” would have been adequate following Oct. 7.
“You have to go ahead and support your friends and allies,” he told the BBC, “and Hezbollah and Hamas are not friends of the United States, nor is Iran.”
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