'They see it as weakness': Gen Jack Keane slams Joe Biden's decision to withhold weapons from Israel on 'Fox & Friends'
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Co-host Brian Kilmeade was joined by Gen Jack Keane (Ret) to discuss the Biden administration's call to withhold weapons from Israel if they invade Rafah, on the Friday, May 10 episode of 'Fox & Friends.'
The senior strategic analyst called the President's decision "stunning" and argued that "walking away from Israel" would send a dangerous message to the adversaries of the United States.
Joe Biden's stance on Israel
Speaking with CNN reporter Erin Burnett on Wednesday, May 8, Joe Biden shared his message for Israel, stating, "I made it clear that if they go into Rafah – they haven’t gone in Rafah yet – if they go into Rafah, I’m not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the cities – that deal with that problem."
"We’re going to continue to make sure Israel is secure in terms of Iron Dome and their ability to respond to attacks that came out of the Middle East recently," he clarified, before adding, "But it’s, it’s just wrong. We’re not going to – we’re not going to supply the weapons and artillery shells."
Israel has reportedly begun its military operation in Rafah on Monday, May 6. However, according to POTUS, they are yet to cross the red line and enter the 'population centers.'
Gen Jack Keane's remarks
"In terms of the arms themselves, Israel has plenty of weapons systems and ammunition available to complete the operation in Rafah, but it is a major turning point. The administration has been hinting at this for weeks, but still, when they made the decision, I still found this shocking," Keane told Kilmeade on Friday.
"And I just scratch my head and say, ‘Do these guys actually think about what the consequences are of this kind of decision?’ What does it mean for our allies like Ukraine and Taiwan when they see us pulling back on our number one ally in the Middle East, a country we've had the closest relationship with for 75 years, ever since Israel became a state."
"And it comes on the heels of a US-led coalition to help defend Israel against Iranian ballistic missiles and cruise missiles. It is a stunning decision," he continued. "And our adversaries, I think they look at it much like we did with Afghanistan. And they look at it – the United States pulled out of Afghanistan, walking away from an ally we've been dealing with for 20 years, fighting side-by-side, and helped surrender the country to the enemy."
"And here we are walking away from Israel? And our adversaries look at that, and they see it as weakness, obviously," claimed the veteran.
