Florida’s Governor DeSantis Arrives in Israel, Seeking to Boost Bonds with Jewish State

Governor Ron DeSantis landed in Israel on Sunday, his first overseas trip since taking office.

DeSantis is leading a delegation for the Governor’s Business Development Mission to Israel, which will last until Friday.

Organized in conjunction with Enterprise Florida, Inc., the mission includes more than 90 delegation members, including business professionals, academics, and experts, and serves to “strengthen the economic, academic and cultural bonds between Florida and Israel,” the governor’s office stated.

DeSantis stated Friday that he “promised to be the most pro-Israel Governor in America and our bold agenda for my upcoming Business Development Mission to Israel includes many historic firsts and strengthens Florida’s ties with Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East.”

The delegation “will secure a historic number of memorandums of understanding for a governor’s business development mission. These agreements will benefit Floridians and Israelis for decades to come,” he added.

More than 15 strategic Partnerships and Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) are expected to be signed in the coming week.

As a congressman, DeSantis supported the Taylor Force Act, meant to prevent US funds from supporting the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) rewarding of terrorists and their families.

DeSantis has also supported President Donald Trump’s agenda on Israel, from withdrawing from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal to moving the US embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Since taking office, DeSantis followed through on his commitment and took a strong position opposing the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement, including commercial discrimination against Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria by invoking Florida’s anti-BDS law against Airbnb.