by Philip Giraldi, December 02, 2010
"A former US Ambassador to Israel Daniel Kurtzer has written a well reasoned op-ed explaining that throwing concessions and gifts to Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu in an attempt to obtain relatively minor concessions on his part is precisely the wrong policy to pursue. Kurtzer notes that the deal will be a major shift in policy "…the first direct benefit that the United States has provided Israel for settlement activities that we have opposed for more than 40 years" and he asks "Does anyone really believe that there is a substantive connection between a three month settlement freeze and Israel’s professed need for more airplanes?"
"A former US Ambassador to Israel Daniel Kurtzer has written a well reasoned op-ed explaining that throwing concessions and gifts to Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu in an attempt to obtain relatively minor concessions on his part is precisely the wrong policy to pursue. Kurtzer notes that the deal will be a major shift in policy "…the first direct benefit that the United States has provided Israel for settlement activities that we have opposed for more than 40 years" and he asks "Does anyone really believe that there is a substantive connection between a three month settlement freeze and Israel’s professed need for more airplanes?"
Netanyahu, who despises President Barack Obama, has rightly seen the cajoling by the United States as weakness and as the consequence of failure by Washington to articulate any coherent policy in the Middle East, meaning that he knows that Israel has been empowered to get away with virtually anything it might demand.....
The 39 congressmen who signed the Pollard letter might well first consider the failure of Israel to live up to its agreements before demanding yet another bribe to reward its bad behavior. Rather than attempting to appease Bibi Netanyahu and the kleptocrats who surround him, they should first think of what the United States national interest might be. They should be reminded that they do not represent Israel, having been elected by American voters and supported in their posturings by the long suffering US taxpayer. They should for once not seek more concessions for Israel but should instead demand that Tel Aviv comply with what it has agreed to do. If they cannot do that, they do not deserve to sit in the Congress of the United States of America."
The 39 congressmen who signed the Pollard letter might well first consider the failure of Israel to live up to its agreements before demanding yet another bribe to reward its bad behavior. Rather than attempting to appease Bibi Netanyahu and the kleptocrats who surround him, they should first think of what the United States national interest might be. They should be reminded that they do not represent Israel, having been elected by American voters and supported in their posturings by the long suffering US taxpayer. They should for once not seek more concessions for Israel but should instead demand that Tel Aviv comply with what it has agreed to do. If they cannot do that, they do not deserve to sit in the Congress of the United States of America."
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