During a recent trip to Jerusalem, Vice President JD Vance emphasized that the United States is actively involved in overseeing the delicate Gaza cease-fire, stressing that the American presence is about a collaborative partnership with Israel, not a supervisory role. “We don’t want a vassal state, and that’s not what Israel is. We don’t want a client state, and that’s not what Israel is. We want a partnership,” Vance stated after meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
His remarks come amidst a flurry of visits from top American officials, including President Trump a week prior, and an upcoming visit from Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy, and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, have also been in Israel recently. These concerted efforts highlight the US commitment to stabilizing the region.
Vance explained these high-level visits are crucial to ensuring American personnel are effectively supporting the truce. He acknowledged that the next steps in the cease-fire would not be easy. The truce, brokered in September based on a Trump administration proposal, ended a two-year conflict between Israel and Hamas, but has shown signs of strain with recent flare-ups of violence in Gaza, such as the aftermath of a strike in Nuseirat Camp, central Gaza, seen recently.
Anonymous Trump administration officials expressed concerns that Netanyahu might abandon the deal. The current strategy involves Vance, Witkoff, and Kushner working to prevent Israel from resuming an all-out offensive against Hamas. Vance reiterated the Trump administration’s dedication to achieving a lasting peace, envisioning a future where the US can be less involved in the Middle East as regional allies assume greater responsibility.
A key part of this vision includes expanding the Abraham Accords, a series of diplomatic normalization deals initiated during the first Trump administration between Israel and several Arab nations. However, significant challenges remain, particularly how to disarm Hamas. Netanyahu insists that Hamas must disarm for the war to conclude, a demand the militant group views as surrender, deeply rooted in its ideology of armed resistance.
When pressed on how Hamas would be persuaded to disarm, Vance offered no specifics, simply stating, “We’re going to keep working on it.” He had similarly avoided setting a deadline or outlining enforcement mechanisms for Hamas’s disarmament the previous day.
Another contentious issue is the future role of the Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Netanyahu has consistently rejected the idea of the Palestinian Authority controlling postwar Gaza. Despite this, senior Palestinian Authority leaders, Hussein al-Sheikh and Majed Faraj, were scheduled to meet with Egyptian officials in Cairo to discuss the future of Gaza.
Vance also met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and visited with hostages recently released from Gaza before his scheduled return to Washington. The initial phase of the cease-fire saw the release of 20 Israeli hostages from Gaza and nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israel. Since then, Hamas has returned the bodies of at least 15 individuals to Israel, while Israel has returned over 150 Palestinian bodies to Gaza.
Despite the challenges, Vance concluded with optimism: “I think that we have an opportunity to do something really historic, so we’re going to keep working at it with all of our friends in the Israeli government.”