By Jeff Mason and Kanishka Singh
PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) -U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said on Sunday she was not concerned about talks between former President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and reiterated her positions on the conflict in the Middle East.
Democratic presidential candidate Harris faces Republican Trump in a tight race for the Nov. 5 U.S. elections.
“No,” Harris said when asked if talks between Trump and Netanyahu could undermine what the current U.S. government is trying to achieve.
Trump and Netanyahu have spoken on a few occasions in recent weeks. They had close ties when Trump was president as the U.S. moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which delighted Israelis and infuriated Palestinians.
“I do believe that it is critically important that we as the United States of America be an active participant in encouraging one, that this war ends, that we get the hostages out but also that there is a real commitment among nations to a two-state solution and the ‘day after’ (in Gaza),” Harris told reporters on Sunday.
President Joe Biden has supported Israel during its wars in Gaza and Lebanon after Palestinian Islamist group Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Harris and Trump have pledged to maintain U.S. support for its ally.
In the Oct. 7, 2023, attack, about 1,200 were killed and nearly 250 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies. Israel’s subsequent assault on Hamas-governed Gaza has killed around 43,000, according to Gaza’s health ministry. It has displaced nearly everyone in Gaza, caused a hunger crisis and led to genocide allegations at the World Court that Israel denies.
Israel’s separate campaign in Lebanon has killed over 2,500 and displaced over a million. Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, who have been engaged in cross-border fire with Israel for the past year.
(Reporting by Jeff Mason in Philadelphia and Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
