Prime Minister of Israel: The alliance with the US is unshakable

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today that the alliance between Israel and the US is unshakable. He said this in an online speech at the State Department's Democracy Summit in Washington, which was organized by US President Joseph Biden. Netanyahu said this shortly after US President Joseph Biden again expressed concern over the controversial judicial reform in Israel and assessed that it is unlikely that the Israeli prime minister will be invited to the White House in the near future. "Israel and the US have had occasional differences, but I want to assure you that the unshakable alliance of the largest democracy in the world and a strong, proud and independent democracy - Israel, in the heart of the Middle East. Nothing can change that," Netanyahu said. The Prime Minister of Israel expressed his belief that a broad national consensus on judicial reform is possible. He announced on Monday that he was delaying the reform after nearly three months of protests across Israel and repeated calls from international partners, including the US, for a compromise. This morning, in response to Biden's statement, Netanyahu pointed out that Israel will not make decisions "based on external pressures, including the best friends", Israeli media reported. Protest organizers in Israel called for a demonstration in support of Biden outside the US Embassy in Israel on Thursday, and Netanyahu's allies sharply criticized the American leader. Israel's public security minister, leader of the ultra-nationalist party Jewish Force (Ocma Yehudit) Itamar Ben-Gvir, told Israel's military radio that Israel is not "just another star on the American flag." He said he expects the US president to understand that, AP reported. Education Minister Joav Kish told the public broadcaster Khan that perhaps a friend should not interfere in internal affairs. Nimord Cohen from the Middle East Institute recalled that US-Israeli relations have gone through crises before, including the relationship to the agreement on limiting Iran's nuclear capabilities, according to AP. Now, however, the White House seems to be "questioning Netanyahu's competence as prime minister and whether he is reliable and responsible," Cohen said. Netanyahu says he is aiming to reach a consensus on reform in talks with opposition leaders that began on Tuesday. The leader of the Israeli opposition, Yair Lapid, announced on Twitter that Israel has been the closest ally of the US for decades, but that "the most radical government in the country's history ruined it in three months."