I want to be sure you saw the recent good news about our legislative agenda. On Wednesday, 69 senators and 262 representatives sent bipartisan letters to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo standing with Israel against discrimination from the International Criminal Court. Last week, 90% of the House signed a bipartisan letter calling for an extension of the United Nations arms embargo on Iran.
I want to thank you for your continued support and commitment to our mission and work to advance the U.S.-Israel relationship amid the most difficult times.
Below are more stories we are following this week—including a new House bill to advance U.S.-Israel health cooperation.
Best,
Brian Shankman
Director of Regional Affairs and Development
AIPAC Briefing: Good News Worth Sharing
Featuring: Becky Strapp (5 minutes)
Becky Strapp—Director of Educational Initiatives in the AIEF office in Jerusalem—shares some inspiring stories coming out of Israel this week.
Pompeo Visits Israel to Discuss Shared Challenges
This week, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz to discuss U.S.-Israel COVID-19 cooperation and security issues related to Iran's continued aggression in the region.
Pompeo’s visit, which also included meeting with top Israeli security officials, is the first trip to Jerusalem by a senior diplomatic figure since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
AIPAC Memo: Iran Advances its Dangerous Behavior
Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Iranian regime has expanded its dangerous behavior—targeting the United States and our allies rather than supporting its own citizens.
In the last three months, Iran has ramped up cyberattacks, launched a military satellite, harassed U.S. naval vessels in international waters, used its proxies in Iraq to attack U.S. troops, and continued to support Hezbollah and the Assad Regime in Syria.
The U.S. should continue efforts to neutralize Iran's destabilizing capabilities while supporting Israel's ability to defend itself.
Support U.S.-Israel Cooperation on COVID-19 Research
The U.S.-Israel relationship is a partnership that benefits us. This week, new bipartisan legislation was introduced in both the Senate and the House that would further U.S.-Israel COVID-19 cooperation.
This legislation, authored by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Chris Coons (D-DE) in the Senate and Reps. Chris Pappas (D-NH), David Kustoff (R-TN), Lance Gooden (R-TX), and Tom Suozzi (D-NY) in the House, would create a U.S.-Israel grant program to promote key innovative solutions to COVID-19 and other health problems. The program would be funded equally by the U.S. and Israel, with potential matching private sector funding.
Iranian Rial Drops to Lowest Rate Since September 2018
The Iranian rial hit its lowest rate against the U.S. dollar since September 2018 on the unofficial market on Tuesday.
Iranian Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri said on Sunday that U.S. sanctions, the coronavirus outbreak, a drop in oil prices and a slump in the global economy had caused “perilous conditions” for Iran’s economy.
Iran—the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism—remains America and Israel's greatest long-term threat in the Middle East. The United States must take firm action to support regional allies and ensure that Iran can never acquire a nuclear weapons capability. To achieve these objectives, the United States must continue its economic, diplomatic and political pressure on Iran.
Thank Your Members of Congress for Standing with America and Israel at the ICC
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is considering unjust, politicized criminal cases against the U.S. and Israel, while ignoring cases that actually warrant its attention.
Please thank your members of Congress who signed bipartisan letters—authored by Reps. Elaine Luria (D-VA) and Mike Gallagher (R-WI) in the House and Sens. Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Rob Portman (R-OH) in the Senate—encouraging continued support for the U.S. and Israel against illegitimate attacks by ICC. Urge all members to oppose such attacks.
