Vice President J.D. Vance on Thursday criticized Israel’s Knesset for passing a symbolic vote in support of annexing the West Bank, calling the move a “very stupid political stunt” during his visit to the country, as reported by The Western Journal.

The West Bank, located on the western bank of the Jordan River, was captured by Israel from Jordan during the 1967 Six-Day War. Israel administers the area, which includes several Israeli settlements, while Palestinians continue to view the territory as central to a future Palestinian state.

“When I asked about it, somebody told me it was a political stunt, that it had no practical significance. It was symbolic,” Vance said in a video posted to X. “I mean, look, if it was a political stunt, it was a very stupid political stunt I personally take some insult to it.”

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“The West Bank is not going to be annexed by Israel,” he continued. “The policy of the Trump Administration is that the West Bank will not be annexed by Israel. That will continue to be our policy. And if people want to take symbolic votes, they can do that, but we certainly weren’t happy about it.”

The vote to annex the West Bank passed with support from far-right lawmakers, despite opposition from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, according to the Times of Israel. The legislation would still require three additional votes before becoming law.

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Israeli legislator Avi Maoz, who supported the bill, said Israel should “apply its laws and sovereignty to the areas of settlement in Judea and Samaria to establish the status of these areas as an inseparable part of the sovereign State of Israel.”

“The Holy One, blessed be He, gave the people of Israel the Land of Israel. Settlement in the Land of Israel is the redemption and national revival, settlement is what makes the Land of Israel flourish after two thousand years of exile,” Maoz said.

“In applying sovereignty to Judea and Samaria, we are making a correction that is long overdue. Since the government has been procrastinating, our job as members of Knesset is to do this.”

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, whose Otzma Yehudit party backed the measure, said he was “proud” of the vote despite international backlash.

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“There is pressure on you, international pressure,” Ben Gvir said. “But the right-wing government is doing what is right for the residents of the State of Israel. And what is right for the residents of the State of Israel is sovereignty now.”

U.S. officials made clear that the Trump administration does not support annexation. “They passed a vote in the Knesset, but the president has made clear that’s not something we’d be supportive of right now,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters before departing for Israel.

“We think there’s potential for [it to be] threatening to the peace deal.”

President Donald Trump also addressed the matter in an interview with Time before the Knesset vote. “It won’t happen. It won’t happen. It won’t happen because I gave my word to the Arab countries,” the president said.

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“And you can’t do that now. We’ve had great Arab support. It will not happen. Israel would lose all of its support from the United States if that happened.”

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