Bibi on Board the USS George H.W. Bush

The Fellowship | July 5, 2017

As Stand for Israel told you earlier, the American supercarrier USS George H.W. Bush spent the 4th of July in the Holy Land, and PM Netanyahu was able to celebrate the day with his American friends and allies. Aboard the ship, Netanyahu touted the shared values and vision of his nation and their allies in the United States:

This is my second visit to an American aircraft carrier. Some 20 years ago, when I was first elected Prime Minister I visited on the deck of another carrier. So much has happened in those two decades. Our alliance has gotten stronger, mightier, most intimate, and we recognize a basic truth: Israel has no greater friend than the United States of America, and the United States has no greater friend than Israel.

You can applaud. This is true.

Mayor of Haifa, whom I recognize too, you know how true that is.

Now, I stand on the deck of a mighty aircraft carrier of the United States of America, and a few miles here, across the sea, is another mighty aircraft carrier of our common civilization, it’s called the State of Israel.

This great aircraft carrier is a floating island of America. It’s a symbol to the world of freedom and victory. The great crew that works off this ship helps keep the world secure from the threat of terror. This carrier has served as a base for X flights against the Islamic State, and the war against ISIS should be seen for what it is, a clash between good and evil.

Every sailor on this ship should be immensely proud that you are serving good. Your families should be proud of you; the American people should be proud of you. I know that they are.

So whenever your grandchildren ask you where you were during this fight for civilization, you can say, “We were on the front lines. We were on board the carrier George H.W. Bush.”

I thank you, the people of Israel thank you, and the free world thanks you.

And as we stand on this massive aircraft carrier, we can see this other carrier called Israel. Israel too is a symbol to the world of freedom and victory; it too helps secure the world against terror; it too is on the front lines on the battle between civilization and darkness.

Israel and America share the same values and the same vision. Our strength derives from our democracies, our diversity and our dedication to individual liberty. We are both peace loving people, but we recognize that sometimes we need to fight those enemies of peace, those who want to chop the head off our common societies. We recognize that to secure peace and maintain peace, we must be able to defend ourselves. This is what we do together.