WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, emphasized his support for Israel Tuesday during a speech before the National Jewish Democratic Council.

"When I am President, the United States will stand shoulder to shoulder with Israel," Obama told the audience, "in search of this peace and in defense against those who seek its destruction."

Obama, who is seeking his party's presidential nomination, also spoke about the situation in Iraq and the nation's energy policy.

The Illinois Democrat came under criticism last month for saying that "Nobody is suffering more than the Palestinian people," during a campaign stop in Iowa.

Obama told the audience it was time to "turn the page on our energy policy" and criticized a national energy strategy that sends "millions of dollars a day to Middle Eastern dictators" and helps to "destroy our planet in the process."