Vice President JD Vance on Thursday warned Israel about continued military strikes in Lebanon that have put the United States and Iran's already fragile agreement to end their war in further jeopardy.  

"The president has grown frustrated sometimes that we seem to be right on the cusp of a major breakthrough in the agreement, then all of a sudden there's a major explosion that goes off in a civilian population center in Beirut and a lot of people who have nothing to do with Hezbollah lose their lives," Vance said from the White House briefing room, referring to the Islamist militia and Iranian proxy entrenched in Lebanon.

Vance spoke one day after President Trump signed a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding with Iran that also includes a commitment from both sides to hold further talks on a final agreement over the next 60 days.

He said the Israeli strikes inside Lebanon amid the negotiating period were "not acceptable." 

The conflict, now nearly four months old, has driven up global oil prices and U.S. gasoline costs, compounding inflation concerns and fueling voter dissatisfaction that could erode Republican support in competitive districts during the midterm elections. 

The memorandum includes the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, off the coast of Iran, through which roughly 20% of the world's oil supply travels. 

Public disapproval of the handling of the war, along with bipartisan congressional rebukes and perceptions of it as a costly quagmire contradicting the president's "America First" ethos, could mobilize opposition turnout and sway independents, enabling Democrats to flip the narrow GOP majorities in the House and potentially challenge the Senate. 

Recent mainstream polls show declining U.S. support for Israel and Netanyahu. 

Pew Research in March found 60% of Americans view Israel unfavorably, up from 42% in 2022, with 59% expressing little or no confidence in Netanyahu. 

As Iran's primary proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah serves as a key component of its "axis of resistance" against Israel, providing Tehran with a heavily armed forward base on Israel's northern border that has triggered major escalations, including Israel's 2024 ground operations in southern Lebanon. 

The now-signed MOU calls for the immediate and permanent termination of military operations "on all fronts, including in Lebanon," by the US, Iran, and their allies, while committing both sides to enduring Lebanon's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

The clause, which was reportedly pushed by Iran during negotiations, aims to halt fighting involving Hezbollah and Israel but has sparked disputes, as Israel is not a signatory and has signaled it will not be bound by the agreement regarding its operations or presence in southern Lebanon. 

"The Lebanon component is about regional peace," Vance said Thursday. "What that means is we expect Hezbollah is not going to be firing rockets and firing drones at the Israelis, and we also expect that the Israelis are not going to be going wild in Lebanon. Both sides have to honor their end of the deal."

He also said, "The president said this a couple of weeks ago – that a ceasefire in that region of the world just means they're shooting a little bit less at each other than they were before.

Trump acknowledged reports that during a phone call earlier this month, he called Netanyahu "crazy" over the Lebanon issue but said the world leaders still get along. 

Responding to reporting that Netanyahu is "fuming" over the Iran deal and how the White House would respond if Israel continued attacks as a result, Vance told the press, "That's not reflective of the conversations that I've had with him, but maybe he's saying something to somebody else that he's not saying to me."

"You've seen people within Bibi's [Netanyahu's] Cabinet who have come out and attacked the deal and in some ways very personally attacked the President of the United States," Vance said. 

In a moment that appeared to reveal the administration's awareness of global sentiment against Israel, Vance also said, "Number one, Donald J. Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time, and he happens to be the head of state of the world's superpower." 

Warning Netanyahu's cabinet members, Vance also said, "If I was in the Cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world."

The vice president also laid out the administration's vision for how Lebanon and Israel, considered the United States' longest and closest Middle East ally, can continue to exist as neighbors without severe conflict.

 "Eventually, what we want to see is the Lebanese government, the elected representatives of the people of Lebanon who are able to police southern Lebanon so that Hezbollah has not taken over the country, the Israelis are not threatened and then, consequently, the Israelis are not attacking southern Lebanon or Beirut either."

In a moment of levity, Vance addressed criticisms that his experience doesn't lend itself to hostile, high-stakes negotiations, to which he answered, "I would point those progressive critics to the fact that just two days ago, I spent over an hour on The View. So, I actually have great experience in very hostile negotiations and look, Joy Behar is way tougher than the Iranians and she and I are best friends now."

Amanda Head is White House Correspondent for Just The News. You can follow her here.