Bernie Sanders will not attend next week’s AIPAC conference
US Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders says he will not attend the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference in Washington next week.
Sanders made the announcement in a letter to AIPAC President Robert Cohen on Friday afternoon.
He expressed regret that he could not attend the annual meeting, where important American politicians and influential Zionist figures gather every year.
"I would very much have enjoyed speaking at the AIPAC conference. Obviously, issues impacting Israel and the Middle East are of the utmost importance to me, to our country and to the world," he wrote.
The senator from Vermont is the first Jewish politician to ever win a presidential primary. He is the only presidential candidate in either party not to address the AIPAC conference, which is considered a must-stop for politicians who are seeking to bolster their pro-Israel credentials.
Sanders said he is traveling throughout the West next week and his campaign schedule prevents him from attending the pro-Israel meeting.
“Unfortunately, I am going to be traveling throughout the West and the campaign schedule that we have prevents me from attending,” he said.
Sanders' rival, Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton, will be a featured speaker at the conference, where all the presidential candidates are traditionally invited by AIPAC in an election year.
Leading Republican presidential contender Donald Trump's potential attendance this year has drawn backlash from participants, many of whom plan to boycott his speech on Monday, because he said recently that he wants to remain "neutral" about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict so he could broker a deal as president.
Trump’s main rival, Senator Ted Cruz, has condemned Trump for saying he would not meddle in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Cruz said last month he would ignore Palestinians and serve Israel, if he won the race to the White House in November.
"Let me tell you this: As president, I have no intention of being neutral. As president, I will be unapologetically alongside the nation of Israel," said the Texas senator, who is currently in second place in the GOP presidential race.
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