The White House seeks to avert a diplomatic crisis in the Middle East following Mike Huckabee’s controversial interview with Tucker Carlson

The media Politicorevealed Monday that senior officials in President Donald Trump's administration have communicated over the past few days with several Arab governments to ease tensions, following statements by the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, who suggested that the Jewish state had the right to control large portions of the Middle East. According to Politico, the diplomatic effort included Undersecretary of State Chris Landau, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker and other officials. Three people familiar with the conversations, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the news outlet that U.S. representatives had to clarify that Huckabee's comments reflected only a personal opinion and not a change in official Washington policy.

In response to the controversial remarks, mmore than a dozen governments - including the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia - issued a joint statement last Saturday calling the ambassador's words "dangerous and inflammatory"and argued that they contradict Trump's goals regarding Gaza. A senior diplomat from a Gulf country familiar with the administration's recent contacts told Politico that the episode could undermine one of the main U.S. goals in the region: greater Israeli integration in the Middle East.

Controversial remarks

Huckabee's remarks came last Friday during a podcast interview with journalist Tucker Carlson, provoking strong criticism in Arab and Muslim countries, as his words were widely interpreted as a departure from Trump's stated position on Israeli sovereignty. The president has previously assured Arab and Muslim leaders that he would not allow Israel to annex the West Bank.

During the interview, Carlson asked Huckabee whether Israel had a right to a territory that encompassed "essentially the entire Middle East," referring to a biblical interpretation that stretches from the Nile to the Euphrates. Huckabee responded that "it would be fine if it took it all," although he added that Israel is not seeking that outcome. He also asserted that Israel is "asking to take the land that they now occupy" and protect its population, alluding to settlements in the West Bank. Later in the conversation, Huckabee described his previous comment as "a somewhat hyperbolic statement."

Shortly after the interview was published, the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem maintained that Huckabee's comments "were taken out of context." The ambassador also posted several messages on his official X account, criticizing Carlson and accusing media outlets of reporting his statements without presenting "the full context."