Israel’s nonpartisan President Isaac Herzog hailed President Biden as a “true ally of the Jewish people” as leaders around the world struggled to process the news Sunday that the U.S. president was stepping down when his term ends in January.
Ironically, one of Mr. Biden’s first official acts this week as a lame-duck president will be to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for talks ahead of Mr. Netanyahu’s address to a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday.
Vice President Kamala Harris, whom Mr. Biden endorsed as his successor to lead the Democratic ticket against Republican Donald Trump in November, was also scheduled to talk with the Israeli leader.
Relations between the two longtime allies have been strained in recent months over differences over how to conduct the war in Gaza with Palestinian Hamas militants. Israel’s press, which is typically plugged into political currents in Washington, was filled with speculation over the weekend that Mr. Biden was delaying his decision to withdraw until the Netanyahu visit was completed.
Mr. Herzog in his statement on the social media site X cited Mr. Biden’s long record in the Senate and the White House supporting Israel, a record Mr. Biden frequently pointed to during tense negotiations with Mr. Netanyahu and his conservative coalition government.
“As the first U.S. president to visit Israel in wartime, as a recipient of the Israeli Presidential Medal of Honor, and as a true ally of the Jewish people, [Mr. Biden] is a symbol of the unbreakable bond between our two peoples,” Mr. Herzog wrote. “I send him, Jill Biden, and all his family, my warmest wishes from Jerusalem.”
Expressions of affection also came quickly from another country with a long attachment to Mr. Biden over the course of his career: Ireland.
Taoiseach Simon Harris noted in a statement Sunday that Mr. Biden always took a “fierce pride” in his Irish roots, and was a strong supporter of the peace process that helped end sectarian violence between Ireland’s Protestant and Catholic communities.
“Joe Biden, in all the offices he has held, has always been an unwavering voice and passionate worker for peace on the island of Ireland, and our country owes him a great debt for this,” the Irish head of state said.
• David R. Sands can be reached at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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