US Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas has agreed to Israel's entry into the US Visa Waiver Program, which means that for the first time Israeli citizens will be able to travel to the United States visa-free. It will take effect Nov. 30, according to US officials.

"The designation of Israel into the Visa Waiver Program is an important recognition of our shared security interests and the close cooperation between our two countries," Mayorkas said in Wednesday statement confirming Israel's upgraded status.

And Secretary of State Antony Blinken hailed the designation as "a critical step forward" in the US strategic partnership with Israel "that will further strengthen long-standing people-to-people engagement, economic cooperation, and security coordination between our two countries" - as quoted in Axios.