Vance says Israel tried to influence US against Iran deal

In parallel, this Thursday (16), Israel told the Pentagon that it will maintain military forces in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza.

Vance's comments echoed previous criticism of Israeli government policy, amid a growing public rift between the two countries. Vance is seen by many as a future presidential candidate.

He defended the agreement reached last month to end the war. Critics have attacked him for failing to curb Iran's missile program and offering a clear path to dismantling its nuclear facilities, as well as limiting Israel in its war against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

"I know without a shadow of a doubt that there have been people within the Israeli government who are actually trying to steer us away from this policy because they want to continue the military campaign," Vance said.

According to him, these groups "are manipulating and trying to change American public opinion to maintain the war indefinitely."

Vance said that many countries, both allies and adversaries, try to influence American policy and that "it doesn't bother me that Israel tries to do that, frankly it doesn't even bother me that Russia or some of these other countries do it." He stated that this is "just the nature of being a political leader in 2026."

"What bothers me is when these operations, these influence campaigns, actually affect American political judgment," he said.

In June, Vance had already attacked Israeli critics of the Iran deal, claiming that US President Donald Trump is Israel's only ally, in a harsh rebuke that referenced the billions of dollars in defense aid the country receives from the US.

Senior Israeli officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the terms of the deal were bad for Israel because they did not address concerns about Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, a view they said was shared by the Jewish state's entire leadership. When asked if he thought the U.S. would have been involved in the most recent war with Iran if not for Israeli influence, Vance said, "Yes, yes, I do."

"I think the president, regardless of any influence from Israel, firmly believes - and, I repeat, I agree with this - that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon," he said.

The Israeli prime minister's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This Thursday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz told his American counterpart Pete Hegseth that Israel is determined to keep its forces in "security zones" established in Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip.

Katz's office said in a statement that there is "the goal of protecting Israel's borders and communities near the border against threats posed by jihadist forces."

The statement was released after the announcement by the United States that the negotiations held on Tuesday (14) and Wednesday in Rome between Israel and Lebanon were positive and that, in the coming days, the implementation of the so-called pilot zones will begin, from which Israeli troops must withdraw.

Trump asked Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to withdraw Israeli forces from Syria and Lebanon, according to the Axios portal.

"We have never asked the United States to operate in our place along our borders," Katz's statement added. In Lebanon and Gaza, Israeli forces are present in the territories and carry out daily operations against Hezbollah and Hamas.

In the case of Lebanon, Israeli forces remain mobilized in what the Army describes as a security zone, which extends almost 10 kilometers into Lebanese territory, and continue to carry out limited attacks in the south.

In Gaza, the Israeli Army controls 60% of the territory. It is present throughout the external perimeter of the Palestinian territory, along the borders with Israel and Egypt.

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