Former President Barack Obama called himself "basically a liberal Jew" when speaking this week about his relationship with Israel and the Jewish community, Haaretz reported Friday.
Speaking at Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan, Obama's remarks were the first public statements he's made about Israel since leaving office. He maintained that criticizing West Bank settlements was a part of his way of offering support to Israel.
"To be a true friend of Israel, it is important to be honest about it, and the politics of this country sometimes do not allow for it," he said, referring to the U.S.
Obama said the reason his administration abstained from a UN Security Council vote in December 2016 that denounced the Israeli West Bank settlements was because vetoing the resolution would have hurt "our credibility on human rights."
The situation in the West Bank, Obama also suggested, was "not sustainable" long term and warned the settlements could make a Palestinian state nearly impossible. Then President-elect Donald Trump and Israel urged the U.S. to veto the resolution, The Guardian reported.
Obama also said it was "not a matter of dispute" that his administration gave Israel more military support than any other administration, pointing to a Memorandum of Understanding signed in September 2016.
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