Before departing to Washington, Gantz said that he will be discussing "very important issues relating to Israel's security in the next few years," with Esper and other US security.
He added that "while we combat the coronavirus pandemic, we need to remember that our enemies will not rest for one moment. We saw what happened with the terror tunnel along the Gaza Strip border and we are well aware of the challenges we face on all front."
The previous meeting with Esper arose as Israel was set to ask for compensation from Washington should a sale of advanced F-35 stealth fighters be made to the United Arab Emirates following normalization of ties. This meeting follows the finalization of the aforementioned agreement as well as the recent headway made in Bahrain within the past month.“It is a great success by the president and his team in the White House,” Esper said on Tuesday in remarks at The Atlantic Council in Washington, adding that “we’ll see if more countries follow as well. We’re all hopeful, and everybody is trying to roll in that same direction.”Esper said that the normalization agreements are essential for multiple reasons. “It’s the diplomatic opportunities it presents, it’s the security and it’s the economic [opportunities].” He noted that Arab countries “see that there is great potential for economic growth if there is normalization.”Omri Nahmias, Anna Ahronheim, Zachary Keyser and Tobias Siegal contributed to this report.