Presenting credentials to Herzog, Huckabee says Iran seeks to destroy Israel, then US
Amid renewed nuclear talks, new American ambassador says ‘Israel is the appetizer and the US is the entree’ for Tehran; FM tells him Jerusalem couldn’t have asked for better envoy
After presenting his letter of credence to President Isaac Herzog on Monday, Washington’s new ambassador Mike Huckabee accused Iran of seeking to destroy Israel and the United States.
“It has always been their desire that Israel would be the opening act and then it would be America’s turn to face destruction,” said Huckabee, who also discussed Iran with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Monday. “Or, to put it another simple way, Israel is the appetizer and the United States is the entrée.”
The statement came as the administration of US President Donald Trump negotiates with Tehran to soften US sanctions on Iran in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program. Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi first held talks in Muscat on April 12, and again in Rome on Saturday, and are set to hold a third round of talks this Saturday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was expected to speak to Trump over the phone on Monday to discuss the talks and other matters, the Walla news site reported, as Iran accused Israel of seeking to undermine the talks.
Speaking to Huckabee on Monday, Herzog said Iran “continues to pursue its radical vision of regional dominance and destabilization — on its own and via its proxies — whilst pursuing nuclear arms and openly calling for the destruction of Israel.”
“I know you, Mike, share both our heartbreak and our absolute resolve to see every last hostage freed from the Hamas dungeons and returned to their loved ones,” added Herzog, referring to the 59 captives still in Gaza. “Immediately. Every last one.”
Comparing Huckabee to the biblical patriarch Abraham, Herzog said his appointment as envoy “is a shining reflection of the president’s love, friendship and support for the State of Israel.”
Huckabee, a Baptist minister, said his appointment by Trump was “a calling from God himself.”
“That mission is to stand with the people of Israel for peace and prosperity,” said the pro-settler Republican, adding that support for Israel is a “divine position.”
Later Monday, Huckabee met with Sa’ar at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem to discuss Iran’s nuclear program, according to the foreign minister’s office.
They also discussed other “strategic issues” and the strengthening of US-Israel ties, the readout said. It added that Sa’ar thanked Huckabee for his decades of support and told him Israel could not have asked for a better US ambassador.
Just held the first meeting with the new U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee @USAmbIsrael, right after he presented his credentials to President Herzog.
I congratulated him upon assuming his position. Israel could not have expected a better partner in this role. I'm sure… pic.twitter.com/G2JhFs35lN— Gideon Sa'ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) April 21, 2025
Huckabee, a former governor of Arkansas and two-time Republican US presidential candidate, was confirmed for the post earlier this month by the US Senate, which voted roughly along party lines.
During his confirmation hearings, Huckabee appeared to downplay his past pro-settler statements, which have included staunch support for Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Israeli annexation of the territory, as well as opposition to Palestinian statehood and denial that a Palestinian nation exists.
In a hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in March, Huckabee said he supports Trump’s “maximum pressure” sanctions campaign on Iran, adding that “it is better to bankrupt them than it is to bomb them.”
Trump himself has threatened that Iran’s nuclear facilities could be bombed if it fails to reach an agreement. On Thursday, the New York Times reported that he had waved off an Israeli strike on the facilities that was planned for next month.
The US president, who withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran during his first term, announced the negotiations with Tehran during an April 7 meeting with Netanyahu at the White House.
Hebrew media reported that Netanyahu, who has demanded Iran’s nuclear facilities be fully dismantled by agreement or force, was informed of Trump’s announcement just hours earlier, and was given no assurances that Israel’s demands would be met.
Iran, whose leaders are sworn to destroy Israel, says it does not seek nuclear weapons, but has since December increased by about a half its already sizable stockpile of 60 percent-enriched uranium. The enrichment rate is far beyond what is necessary for a civilian nuclear program and a short step away from weapons-grade.
Iran also backs a regional network of anti-Israel terror proxies, including Hamas, Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthi rebels. The Islamic Republic itself attacked Israel for the first time in April last year, and again in October. Israel responded both times, damaging Iran’s air defenses and prompting Israeli officials to mull an attack on its nuclear facilities.
The Times of Israel Community.