Vance says he neither supports nor opposes Netanyahu, distancing himself from Trump

Vice President JD Vance, the second-most powerful figure in the Donald Trump administration, has been distancing himself from President Trump on several major domestic and foreign policy issues.

In an interview Tuesday (local time) with journalist Mark Halperin, who runs the US political outlet 2 Way, Vance said he neither opposes nor endorses Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "I'm not against supporting him, and I'm not for supporting him," he said.

Vance added that his focus is on American candidates. "I support American candidates, and that's what I'm focused on in the midterms," he said. "I'm not going to get involved in Israeli elections."

Netanyahu faces a stiff challenge from opposition leaders ahead of a general election on Oct. 27. Trump declared his support for Netanyahu on Sunday, calling him a "great warrior."

Vance's remarks stand in contrast to Trump's public endorsement.

Vance has long taken a different approach from Trump on Israel and Middle East affairs. He has maintained that the United States should not be dragged along by Israel's regional policies and has opposed Netanyahu's push for war against Iran. His latest interview reaffirms the foreign policy line he has pursued, but it can also be read as a signal that he intends to chart a more distinct course from Trump after next month's midterm elections.

Vance struck a similarly moderate tone in a Washington Post interview last March, arguing that immigration policy should maintain "a degree of rhetorical and strategic balance."

Vance is frequently mentioned alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio as a leading Republican contender for the next presidential race. The 41-year-old said in a CBS interview on Oct. 6 that he would "talk to my wife after the midterms" about whether to mount a presidential bid.

In US political circles, there is growing speculation that if Republicans suffer a heavy defeat in the midterms, the party will have little choice but to shape its presidential strategy around candidates who can credibly distance themselves from Trump.

The Wall Street Journal noted that Vance had shown "a difference in position with President Trump" over the question of endorsing Netanyahu, adding that while Vance is campaigning for Republican candidates in the midterms, "unlike President Trump, he is refraining from making personal endorsements of individual candidates."