By Jim Garamone DoD News, Defense Media Activity
JERUSALEM, October 17, 2015 — In his first trip overseas as
chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr.
will meet with Israeli leaders here.
“The trip has been planned for months,” said Navy Capt. Greg
Hicks, the chairman’s special assistant for public affairs. “The purpose is to
meet his counterpart for the first time and reaffirm the strong ties between
our militaries and our two countries.”
Dunford will meet with Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot, the
commander-in-chief of the Israeli Defense Force, tomorrow at the Kiriya – the
Israeli version of the Pentagon. He will also meet with several other senior
Israeli leaders.
Dunford will also meet with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel
Shapiro and his country team at the U.S. consulate here.
Dunford is in listening mode on this trip, Hicks said. “He
wants to get a from-their-eyes view of our relationship and hopefully build
upon that and establish a relationship with General Eizenkot as we move forward
and advance our alliance,” he said.
Dunford will stress America’s continuing strong support for
Israel. “He will reaffirm America’s commitment to Israel’s security and then
get a view from them of what security conditions are like here,” Hicks said.
There has been a recent outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian
violence in the region. Extremists have reportedly called for a "day of
rage" against Israel. More than 40 people have reportedly been killed in
attacks over the past two weeks.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has called on Israel and
Palestine to restore calm. He will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin
Netanyahu in Berlin next week.
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