Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Eliot Engel (D-NY) is in Israel. On Tuesday, Rep. Engel met with U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman ahead of an upcoming speech in Jerusalem focusing on challenges facing democracies.

“Enjoyed a far ranging discussion in Israel this morning with HFAC Chairman Eliot Engel and his staff,” Ambassador Friedman tweeted. “Bipartisanship is a hallmark of America’s unbreakable bond with Israel.”

Rep. Engel will speak on Wednesday, the first of a two-day conference in Jerusalem hosted by the Israel Democracy Institute in partnership with the Brookings Institute, titled “Democracy under stress: Shared values, common challenges.”

Other speakers include former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro and Brookings experts Natan Sachs, Tamara Cofman Wittes, and former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Itamar Rabinovich.

Rep. Engel’s trip to Israel follows stops in Lebanon and Cyprus over the Memorial Day weekend.