TRENTON – Gov. Chris Christie hosted the Israeli ambassador in the Statehouse today, announcing he will visit the country next spring in his first official trip out of the country.
Christie called it an “important visit for me personally,” not only because of the long history between Israel and the state of New Jersey, but because Ambassador of Israel to the United States Dr. Michael Oren grew up in Christie’s neck of the woods.
West Orange, where Oren grew up, and Christie’s native Livingston were “rival football schools,” the ambassador said.
Oren said New Jersey and Israel are “virtually” the same size and population, but the comparison diverges when examining Israel’s geopolitical predicament – “tens of thousands” of rockets pointed in their direction and nuclear weapons development by “hostile nations” in the region.
Neither Christie nor Oren said what exactly the two men discussed earlier today during a closed-door meeting.
