Indyk: Of Course Obama Is Going To Pressure Israel
Israel can no longer expect "blank cheques" from Washington once president-elect Barack Obama's administration takes over in January, a former US ambassador to the Jewish state said on Sunday. "The era of the blank cheque is over," said Martin Indyk, director of the Centre for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institute who is considered close to incoming secretary of state Hillary Clinton... "President Obama surely will want to work with Israel on this (Middle East) agenda. But there are obligations on both sides..." Indyk said.
It's true enough that Obama's rhetoric is about "obligations on both sides." But for some reason the only concrete measures he lists are about Israeli behavior:
When Obama talks about concrete measures, he lists only demands of Israel, such as alleviating pressure on Palestinian daily life and freezing settlement construction. He mentions no parallel demands of the Palestinians, such as a need for them to fight terrorism or undertake democratic governmental reforms. All this suggests that as part of his general view of American global priorities, Obama will be more attentive to Palestinian rights than Israel's security needs.
That should have also been pretty obvious from his choice of advisers. And yet Obama boosters continue to insist that Obama's choices aren't openly hostile to Israel. Which is strange because they seemed pretty hostile back before they were officially appointed:
However, Israeli sources say that Jones is not a favorable choice because of his blatantly cool attitude to Israel. They point to the fact that in his current position, he has sought to expand trade with Gulf States and has expressed opposition to American laws barring U.S. firms from joining the Arab boycott of Israel... At NATO, he served as Supreme Allied Commander Europe. During this last role, which includes Israel in the group of 91 countries in the geographical area, Jones' cool attitude toward Israel was noteworthy compared to some of his predecessors, such as Alexander Haig and Wesley Clark.
That's from November 30, 2007. Jones spent the subsequent year producing a mountain of findings, precedents, and memos blaming Israel for the stalled peace process and culminating in a scathing one-sided report that got put in a drawer. His appointment as Obama's NSA Chief sent Israeli military officials into a tizzy because of he once suggested putting NATO troops in the West Bank (all things considered kind of a stupid idea). To be fair: Israeli sources now tell journalists that Jones only floated the idea as a hypothetical: something like "well if security is the issue would it help if we put NATO troops there?" But their subsequent behavior is kind weird if the suggestion was mere half-hearted musing.
Of course Obama's White House will ratchet up pressure on Israel. That's what's supposed to happen. It's not because it's filled with anti-Semites. It's because liberal foreign policy experts believe that the current level of US-Israel cooperation is a net negative for US interests in the world. They're wrong - but fair enough. They're in charge of US foreign policy for the next few years and will be acting accordingly. That sucks - but fair enough.
But can we please stop with the obnoxious MJ Rosenberg-style "it's 'pro-Israel' because I get to personally decide what words mean" nonsense? Down that road lies "invading Israel is pro-Israel."
References:
* Obama spells end of blank cheques for Israel [AFP]
* There will be friction [Ha'aretz]
* Obama Foreign Policy Appointees: Israel To Blame For Mideast Instability, Sweeping Concessions Necessary [MR]
* Analysis: J'lem mostly pleased with Obama choices [JPost]
* Former NATO head expected to join Rice's Mideast team [Ha'aretz]
* Israel fears scathing U.S. report on its West Bank policies [Ha'aretz]
* IDF opposes plan for NATO in W. Bank [JPost]
* Obama NSA Pick James Jones: Hey, How About Some International Troops In The West Bank? [MR]
* Good piece on Jones and NATO forces in territories [Middle East Forum]
* Marty Peretz: Samantha Power Only Wants To Invade Israel Because She Loves It So Much [MR]
Previously:
* Moderate Palestinian State Department Darling: We "Cherish The Path" Of Genocidal Hamas Lunatic Ahmed Yassin
* Carter: Obama "Promised To Me" That He'll Immediately Tee Off On Israel [Video]
* Detente In Our Time - Obama Prepares To Sell Out Poland In The Face Of Russian Aggression. Again. (Plus: By The Way, Missile Defense Works)
