Adm. Brad Cooper praised Israel’s military leadership and cooperation with the US as IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir told senior commanders to maintain immediate readiness for a return to combat.
By David Brummer
US Central Command chief Adm. Brad Cooper praised the close military relationship between Israel and the United States during a meeting with senior IDF commanders on Monday, while IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir warned that Israeli forces must remain ready to resume intense fighting.
“We achieved the unimaginable together. Our joint achievement is historic,” Cooper told the commanders, in remarks obtained exclusively by The Jerusalem Post.
“You are a nation of warriors, and the people sitting here are the leaders of those warriors,” Cooper said. “I am proud to serve shoulder to shoulder with you.”
Cooper also spoke about the future of US-Israel military cooperation, describing the partnership between the two militaries as a key strategic relationship.
Zamir convened the high-level operational forum on Monday evening, bringing together senior military leadership, including all commanders ranked brigadier general and above.
With political negotiations underway across several fronts, Zamir told the commanders that the military’s recent achievements had created the conditions for the diplomatic processes currently underway.
“Political negotiations are taking place across all major theaters in recent days, all of these are the result of the IDF’s historic achievements,” Zamir said. “We must ensure that we fully exploit and maximize the gains from these operations.”
At the same time, he stressed that the IDF could not afford to lower its guard.
“We are well-prepared defensively, while maintaining immediate readiness and alertness to return to intense fighting,” Zamir said.
The forum included operational and intelligence briefings covering the various active theaters, as well as discussions on the continuation of the military campaign.
Commanders reviewed developments in combat operations, examined specific cases and discussed lessons learned from fighting across the spectrum of theaters.
Zamir described the current time as an “interim period” and said the IDF was facing a strategic crossroads after a prolonged, multi-front campaign.
“Our mission is to shape reality through initiative and not to be dragged by events,” he told the commanders.
He credited the IDF’s recent achievements to the forces operating across all branches of the military.
“The achievements we have secured across all fronts are first and foremost your achievements, the commanders and forces on land, at sea and in the air, the intelligence personnel, communications specialists, logistics and administration teams,” Zamir said.
“Together you have led the IDF to significant accomplishments and changed the security reality.”
Cooper also reviewed the military partnership between CENTCOM and the IDF during the meeting. Zamir thanked him for the cooperation and presented him with a small shofar as a token of appreciation, describing the relationship between the two militaries as unprecedented and a strategic anchor for Israel.
