Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders returned to the U.S. on Sunday following a nearly weeklong trip to Israel aimed at boosting Arkansas’ diplomatic and economic ties with the Jewish state.

The trade delegation was Sanders’ first official visit to Israel as governor and her first time visiting the Jewish state since her father, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, was confirmed to his role in April. 

“It was an amazing trip,” Sanders told Jewish Insider in an interview. “The thing that stands out and is so amazing to see in person is just the resiliency of the people of Israel and just their steadfast commitment. Getting to visit with people that are living the day-to-day challenges that they are and yet, they’re still showing up for work, they’re still going to school, they’re still running their businesses and continuing on in the face of some pretty uphill, significant challenges is amazing.”

“I’m honored I got the chance to go and thankful for what I think is a great future in partnership and collaboration between Arkansas and the State of Israel in a lot of different ways,” she said.

Asked about her father’s tenure as ambassador thus far, Sanders remarked that Amb. Huckabee viewed the position as “a calling” rather than a job, given his longstanding connection to the Jewish state.

“Not only does he have a sense of joy about the job, but he has a true passion. For him, it is not a job, it’s a calling. He is somebody who has always led with conviction, but I don’t think that there’s any role he’s taken on where there’s a greater sense of conviction than this one,” Sanders said of her father, who served as governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007.

Sanders noted that her father’s appointment as ambassador to Israel was “a bit of a culmination of everything else he’s done in his life, from being a pastor to a governor to a communicator. It is a role that kind of encompasses a lot of different parts of his background, and something that he is genuinely very honored to be able to do.”

“Several members of the government leadership in Israel all commented [on what] an amazing job he was doing, how much they appreciate what he’s doing,” she explained, adding that, “One in particular even joked that the only bad thing about my dad in that role is that he may love [the country] more than even some of the Israelis.”

During her trip, Sanders met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Economy Minister Nir Barkat, and was given a tour of the Knesset by Speaker Amir Ohana. The governor took part in a tour of the Ariel settlement in the West Bank alongside House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and a delegation of House lawmakers. Her first stop upon landing in Israel was Jerusalem, visiting the Western Wall to pray with her mother, former Arkansas First Lady Janet Huckabee, who moved to the Jewish state following her husband’s confirmation as ambassador. 

During Sanders’ summit with Netanyahu, given that “components of Israel’s Iron Dome are produced in Arkansas … the governor expressed interest in expanding that partnership to support both Arkansas’ economy and Israel’s national security,” according to a readout from her office. 

Asked if Netanyahu or others offered any suggestions of ways American governors could strengthen the U.S.-Israel relationship, Sanders told JI, “Generally, they appreciated us being there and showing such public support. Obviously, my dad is very vocally supportive, and they certainly appreciate that. I think the biggest thing was how much just showing up makes a difference, and being willing to not back down despite the fact that there is criticism.”

“[The Israelis] appreciated us and our delegation making the effort, not just to put something on Twitter or Instagram, but to come there in person and show our commitment to the relationship. Also, we don’t just want to show up, but we want to be able to work with Israeli companies to bring business into our state, to increase trade,” the Arkansas governor said. 

Sanders noted that her administration had “done a lot when it comes to public legislation to support and show our commitment, whether it was signing the Judea and Samaria Act, where we recognized the area west of the Jordan [River] as Judea and Samaria, the way that God intended it to be. We’ve also invested significantly in pension funds and Israeli bonds in our state and a number of other things.” 

“I didn’t have to tell them [the Israelis] that we had done those things. They knew. They’d been paying attention and they appreciated the things that we were doing and the way that we were showing support, most recently by coming to Israel and being there in person,” she said. 

While in Israel, Sanders signed an Arkansas-Israel Memorandum of Understanding aimed at strengthening the trade relationship between the two. Little Rock counts Israel as one of its biggest trading partners, exporting over $150 million in goods to the Jewish state last year. 

“Our goal with the MOU was to deepen the partnerships between Arkansas and Israel, especially in some of the areas that Israel is so advanced in: aerospace and defense, ag tech, energy and manufacturing. Those are also spaces that our state is heavily leaning into,”  Sanders told JI.  

“Agriculture is our number one industry, aerospace and defense are number one exports. Energy and manufacturing are key cornerstones in our state’s economy. So there’s a great synergy between our state and the State of Israel. Being able to collaborate further is good for both of us, and it will continue to facilitate the exchange of information and research between both sides and set the groundwork for a significant amount of future economic cooperation,” she added.

In addition to visiting Israel, Sanders briefly touched down in the United Arab Emirates to meet with government officials and leading aerospace and defense companies.