BICOM

Israel’s Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren said that he anticipates “working closely” with Chuck Hagel, who was finally confirmed yesterday as the new US Defence Secretary after a protracted and often bitter nominations process.

The US Senate yesterday voted 58-41 to approve Hagel’s nomination, with four Republicans eventually voting with rival Democrats to break a filibuster that had held up confirmation of the appointment, in a stalemate which had lasted over a week. Republican opponents to Hagel’s appointment had brought a number of objections to his nomination, including accusations that Hagel had been unduly hostile towards Israel and soft on the danger of Iran’s nuclear programme.

However, following the Senate vote yesterday, Israel’s Ambassador to the United States said in a statement that he expects to “work closely” with Hagel and further commented, “Under the Obama Administration, security ties between the United States and Israel have been superb. We are fully confident that those bonds will grow stronger still as our countries continue to meet common challenges to our security.”

The appointment of Hagel, a Vietnam combat veteran, essentially completes US President Obama’s national security team for his second term in office, joining Secretary of State John Kerry and CIA Director-designate John Brennan. Obama and Kerry are scheduled to visit Israel and the region in late March.