The recent Knesset vote on West Bank annexation was a "deliberate political provocation by the opposition" meant to incite conflict during US Vice President JD Vance's visit, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement on Thursday.
The clarification came following Vance's statement that US President Donald Trump would oppose Israeli annexation of the West Bank, and it would not happen, suggesting a move by Israeli lawmakers to that end looked like a stupid "political stunt".
A bill applying Israeli law to the West Bank, a move tantamount to annexation of the territory Israel captured in the 1967 Six-Day War, won preliminary approval from Israeli lawmakers on Wednesday.
Asked by reporters about the move, Vance said: "If it was a political stunt, it is a very stupid one, and I personally take some insult to it."
Vance spoke after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that moves toward annexing the territory that Palestinians seek for part of an independent state could endanger Trump's plan to end the Gaza war, which has yielded a shaky ceasefire so far.
"The West Bank is not going to be annexed by Israel. The policy of President Trump is that the West Bank will not be annexed. This will always be our policy," Vance said during a trip to Israel to help shore up the Gaza ceasefire.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said after Vance's remarks that the government had not decided to bring the vote on annexation forward at this stage in order to ensure the success of Trump's multi-stage Gaza plan.
"[Trump] is undoubtedly the most pro-Israel American president," National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir wrote on X/Twiter. "Alongside that, it is important to emphasize: Israel is an independent sovereign state - the members of the Knesset vote according to their judgment."
The US has long been Israel's most powerful and staunch major power ally and the Trump administration is particularly close to Israel with considerable sway over its leadership.
Senior US officials including Rubio have been visiting Israel seeking to keep alive the brittle ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian terror group Hamas after two years of devastating war that has upended the Middle East.
Vance feels 'pretty good' about Gaza ceasefire
Vance told reporters in Tel Aviv that he "feels pretty good" about the Gaza ceasefire after having talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Repeated bouts of gunfire and explosions have shaken the deal and the two sides have traded blame for violations of its first phase, which has seen the return of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, a handover of bodies of some deceased hostages, and a partial pullout of Israeli troops.
The US State Department said Rubio was visiting Israel to support the implementation of Trump's 20-point Gaza plan and pave the way towards reconstruction, stable governance and possible steps towards Palestinian statehood.
He was preceded by Vance, who was also due to meet Defense Minister Israel Katz and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer on Thursday before departing.
Wednesday's vote was the first of four needed to pass the law and coincided with Vance's visit to Israel, a month after Trump said he would not allow Israel to annex the territory.
The Likud party did not support the legislation, which was sponsored by lawmakers outside his ruling coalition and passed by a vote of 25-24 out of 120 lawmakers.
Netanyahu's government had been pondering annexation as a response to a string of major Western allies recognizing a Palestinian state to put pressure on Israel to stop its war in Gaza, but appeared to shelve the idea after Trump objected.