YORAM ETTINGER:The USA – Better Unique Ally than Honest Broker
“Israel Hayom” Newsletter, October 10, 2011
http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=631
All US Administrations have displayed a split personality when it comes to
Israel.
On the one hand, US Administrations have been Israel’s unique ally,
implementing the will of the American People and Congress since the 17th
century, thus forging a mutually-beneficial two-way street security and
commercial alliance, based on shared values, joint interests and mutual
threats.
On the other hand, US Administrations have played the role of an honest
broker between Israel and its Arab enemies. They usually follow the lead of
the UN and Europe-oriented State Department bureaucracy, which has generally
been at odds with the American People and Congress, opposing the
establishment of the Jewish State in 1948, still not recognizing even
western Jerusalem as Israeli territory, embracing Arafat, Saddam Hussein
(until Kuwait’s invasion) and Khomeini (until the US Embassy takeover), and
serving as Israel’s harshest critic in Washington.
The split personality of US Administrations radicalizes Arab positions,
undermines US and Israeli national security, and impairs US-Israel
relations. It attempts to establish a false moral equivalence between
Israel – a role model of counterterrorism, democracy and unconditional
alliance – and the Palestinian Authority – the role model of terrorism, hate
education and alliance with America’s adversaries.
In 2009, former US Ambassador to Israel, Dan Kurtzer, cautioned Special
Envoy George Mitchell against pressuring Israel for an unprecedented
long-term freeze of construction in Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem. However,
pressure was applied, Israel succumbed and Abu Mazen intensified his
demands, thus causing the current impasse.
In August 1970, Israel and Egypt concluded a US-negotiated ceasefire
agreement, which was summarily violated by Egypt by their construction of
the most-advanced Soviet-made anti-aircraft system. The US Administration
pressured Israel to tolerate such a dramatic violation, which played a key
role in the devastating Israeli losses during the October 1973 War.
In 1977, Israel and Egypt launched a peace process, frustrating President
Carter’s pursuit of an international conference and courting radical Arabs.
In 1979, Israel and Egypt concluded a peace treaty, overruling Carter’s
insistence to require Israeli concessions on the Palestinian and Jerusalem
fronts.
In 1994, Israel and Jordan signed a peace treaty, totally independent of
President Clinton’s involvement.
The deal-maker of the only two Israel-Arab peace accords was the direct
initiative and dialogue between Israel, Egypt and Jordan. The deal-breaker
of well-intentioned Presidential initiatives was the undermining of the
direct dialogue, thus failing to produce a single peace accord.
Arab parties to US-led negotiation with Israel cannot be more moderate than
the US Department of State. They consider Israel increasingly susceptible
to pressure, thus upping the ante, which constitutes a tailwind to extremism
and a headwind to peace.
The current US-led initiative aims to produce a resolution of the 100 year
old Arab-Israeli conflict during the term of an incumbent President,
subordinating long-term strategic interests to short-term gains. The time
factor renders the President more vulnerable to pressure by Arab dictators
who are not constrained by election cycles. The President is at ease
pressuring Israel- a democracy which is susceptible to domestic and external
lobbying – to assume more risks for peace, while the boiling Arab Street
mandates less risks and more security!
The Arab-Israeli conflict has never been a top priority in domestic,
regional, or global politics, lagging behind – and unrelated to – the
challenges of Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, the turmoil in all Arab lands, as
well as Russia, China, North Korea, Mexico, Columbia, Venezuela, nuclear
proliferation, ballistic missiles defense, etc. Presidential preoccupation
with Israel-Arab negotiations, while the globe is increasingly unpredictably
threatening, undermines vital US economic and national security interests.
The more significant the US role as an “honest broker,” the less significant
is its role as a “unique ally,” which has produced unique economic and
security benefits to the American People by Israel, “the largest American
aircraft carrier, which does not require a single American boot on board,
deployed in the critical eastern flank of the Mediterranean, saving the
American taxpayer $20BN annually.”
The smothering sandstorms emerging on the Arab Street behoove the US and
Israel to enhance strategic cooperation, which should be top heavy on
“unique alliance” and low on “honest brokerage.”
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