‘Israel Will Not Be the UN’s Punching Bag,’ Vows New US Ambassador

Ambassador Craft demanded the U.N. treat the Jewish state fairly, taking the baton from her predecessor, Nikki Haley, a true friend of Israel.

By United with Israel Staff and AP

On Friday, U.S. Ambassador Kelly Craft held her first press conference since arriving at the United Nations in September.

During the event, Craft vowed that she would strongly oppose Israel being used as “a punching bag” by the U.N. Security Council.

Craft appears to be continuing the legacy of her predecessor, Nikki Haley who established herself as an unwavering voice of fairness at the U.N., which is dominated by member states that maintain a distinctly anti-Israel bias.

In her comments on Friday, Craft reiterated the U.S.’ commitment to fostering dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians.

Craft also warned Iran that the Trump administration will keep up its maximum pressure campaign and use “other tools” if Tehran continues its “malicious behavior.”

In addition to Israel and Iran, Craft specifically addressed North Korea, commenting that all 15 members of the U.N. Security Council are united in their concern about more ballistic missile launches by the communist nation, saying there have been 13 launches since May and Pyongyang’s actions are a serious global issue.

The United States holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council in December and on Thursday Craft arranged for members to have lunch with President Donald Trump at the White House, which she said was relaxed, “very constructive,” covered many important issues including North Korea, and ran over by an hour. She is also taking members to her native Kentucky for the weekend of Dec. 13-15 and to a Brooklyn restaurant that trains refugees and trafficking victims on Dec. 9 along with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

On major world issues, Craft told reporters the United States will respond to human rights abuses in North Korea, Iran and elsewhere, saying in “every corner of the world we’ve got human rights issues.”

She called Iran “a bad actor” saying “we are going to see upheaval whether in Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, wherever it is” until the U.S. maximum pressure campaign produces results.

“We have a lot of tools to use and we will continue to use those with Iran,” Craft said. “We are taking this very seriously. And there are other tools that we will use against Iran if they continue this malicious behavior.”