US Vice President J.D. Vance said that some members of the Israeli government have tried to influence American public opinion to oppose the United States' (US) agreement to end the war with Iran, Reuters news agency reported today.
Vance said this in an episode of the podcast hosted by Joe Rogan, released on Wednesday.
The comments echoed earlier criticisms Vance has made of Israeli government policies, and come at a time of deepening public rift between the two countries. Vance is seen by many as a possible future presidential candidate, according to Reuters.
Vance defended the agreement reached last month to end the war with Iran, which critics in the United States and Israel have condemned for failing to curb Iran's missile program, failing to provide a clear path to dismantling Iran's nuclear facilities and at the same time limiting Israel in its war against Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
"I know without a doubt that there were people within the Israeli government who were trying to, in fact, dissuade us from that policy, because they wanted to continue the military campaign," Vance said.
The US vice president said that while he has "good relations" with some members of the Israeli government, "there are people within their system who we know without a doubt are manipulating and trying to change American public opinion in order to keep the war going indefinitely."
Vance said that many countries, both allies and adversaries of the US, are trying to influence American policy and that he "doesn't mind Israel trying to do that, frankly, I don't even mind Russia or some other countries doing it."
He added that it was "simply the nature of doing politics when you're a political leader in 2026."
"What bothers me is when these operations, these influence campaigns, actually affect American policy decisions," the US vice president said.
Vance lashed out at Israeli opponents of the Iran deal in June, saying that US President Donald Trump was Israel's only ally. His statement was a strong response to critics and referred to the billions of dollars in US military aid Israel receives.
Senior Israeli officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the terms of the deal were bad for Israel because they did not address concerns about Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. They said that view was shared by the entire Israeli leadership.
When asked if he thought the US would have gotten involved in the latest war with Iran if it weren't for Israeli influence, Vance replied: "Yes, yes, I think so."
"I think the president, independent of any influence from Israel, believes very strongly - and I agree with that again - that Iran should not have nuclear weapons," Vance said.
The Israeli prime minister's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, according to Reuters.
Vance also expressed frustration with Americans and others who claim that the Iranians are not negotiable, despite Trump saying last week that the Iranians are "liars and scum" and that dealing with them is a waste of time.
Asked later today about the seemingly contradictory statements, White House spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt said the comments were made at different stages of the war and were not contradictory.
"The president and the vice president are in complete agreement when it comes to where we are right now in this conflict," Leavitt said at a press conference.
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