U.S. Questions Direction of New Israeli Coalition

On the same day that Yisrael Beytenu formally joined the government and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu proclaimed that the disputes with Avigdor Liberman are “behind us,” the U.S. State Department publicly questioned the direction of the new coalition.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters that the rightward shift in the coalition raises “legitimate questions” about the direction of Israeli policy, but the United States will judge the new government based on its actions.
“We have also seen reports from Israel describing it as the most right-wing coalition in Israel’s history and we also know that many of its ministers have said they oppose a two-state solution,” Toner said. “This raises legitimate questions about the direction it may be headed in … and what kind of policies it may adopt.”