Is Obama about to threaten Israel?
Back in 1991, President George H W Bush told Israel that he'd suspend US loan guarantees unless they stopped building settlements in the occupied West Bank. The then right-wing Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Shamir was defeated in elections a short time later, Yitzhak Rabin took over, and in 1993, he signed the Oslo accords with Yasser Arafat.
Is Barack Obama about to try the same tactic? Edward Djerejian, who was Bush senior's Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs in 1991, thinks he might be. Click below to hear the interview.
(broadcast on The World Tonight, BBC Radio 4, 28 May 2009)
© MMIX~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~00~RS~)
Comments
Sign in or register to comment.
Mr. Djerejian said "Now the Palestinians have their obligations, as you well know, Robin.............."
End of interview. How convenient.
For the Israelis, Oslo was a farce. Arafat and his gangsters returned from Tunisia and, under the terms of the agreement, the State of Israel gave them guns.
That is not a typo. The State of Israel gave weapons and ammunition to their enemies.
As a gesture of good faith, this takes some beating.
Complain about this comment
Doesn't President Obama face enough wars already? He's got Afghanistan/Pakistan, Iraq, North Korea and Iran. He's at war with leaders of his own party over sending detainees at GITMO to the US for trail and imprisonment where the justice system may confer rights on them that would make it impossible to imprison them without compromising US intelligence and where they would find new recruits to their cause in American prisons. He's at war with the CIA over his release of memos and then photographs concerning the detainess. He's got intelligence professionals too paralyzed to act to protect the country because he's suggesting that actions approved today might be second guessed and even prosecuted at a future date. He's just angered all anti abortionists in the country with his commencement speech at Notre Dame University. His offer to negotiate with Iran was returned with a demand from President Ahmadinejad for an apology while the response from North Korea was to test another atom bomb, launch missiles, and tear up the truce that has existed for over 50 years. It may trigger a nuclear arms race in East Asia. He's getting it from Republicans for many reasons including his nominee for the Supreme Court and his criticisms of the last administration. Meanwhile no matter what the government says, the economy looks to be getting worse, not better. His plans to rescue Chrysler and GM failed. Does he really want a war with Israel over construction of more homes that would likely further divide his own political party?
Israel's settlements are a response to the map drawn up by Britain in 1948 making Israel only 9 miles wide at one point making Israel an irresistable target for its neighbors to try to destroy. Redrawing the map by building settlements to make the small country militarily defensible after 4 wars to destroy it is no more illegal than those themselves wars were.
President Obama's administration has started out on the wrong foot and is turning into the disaster many of his critics said it would. He's an inexperienced tyro with no qualifications whatsoever to be President. Of the 3 years he spent in the Senate, 1 1/2 were spent running for President while the first year and a half were entirely undistinguished. Other than that he was an editor of a law journal and a "community organizer" whatever that means which in truth is probably a professional rabble rouser.
His vice president seems to manage to put both of his feet in his mouth at the same time on a regular basis while he has no real poltical infrastructure behind him. He has no treasury department, just a Secretary of the Treasury. His diplomatic staff in charge of our critical relations with China and North Korea are beginners and temps. Rush Limbaugh doesn't have to say pubically that he want's Obama to fail, all he has to do is sit back and watch him fail...and take down the rest of us with him. One out of 8 homes in the US has been foreclosed on or is behind in mortgage payments. Why should he even be thinking about Israel which is NOT a problem...yet? People get the government they deserve. Voting stupid for someone you like because he has personal charisma is a ticket to catastrophe. It will hardly surprise me if we are in a new major hot shooting war somewhere before much longer.
Complain about this comment
Obama had signalled a conciliatory tone. This is BBC/PBS stuff. Trouble is, it aint real life. What the liberal media never understand is that the world is not made in their image. The West doesnt rule the world, thank God.
In many cultures, flagging a concession is showing weakness. That is like leaving the door ajar and then having it forced open. I suspect that Obama will be quick learner and things will be back to normal I no time.
Complain about this comment
Why does the BBC only get excited when the prospect of forcing Israel to do something arises?
Where is the recognition of the Israeli state from the murderous Hamas and the grumblers of Fatah?
Where are the concessions from genocidal Syria?
The basic facts are that every time the Israelis have made a concession or step towards peace, they have been attacked.
This has happened EVERY time. Why should the Israelis think their sworn Arab enemies will act any differently this time?
Complain about this comment
Obama's holding all the cards isn't he? Obama received huge support in November from Jewish Americans. Netanyahu is disliked by Jewish Americans. Netanyahu's only card is obstinacy. He come second in the Israeli elections? Obama can put on the table: American loans; American aid; the illegal settlers; right-of-Palestinian-return; an armed sovereign Palestinian state; military supply; trade sanctions, nuclear weapons; the NPT treaty; war crimes; etc etc etc Oh, I forgot - there's peace as well.
For his part, Obama will promise to deal with Iranian nuclear weapons programme for Israel. Not very difficult: they don't have a nuclear weapons programme. That's a done deal. It just requires a phoney visit to Tehran and a speech at the appropriate time.
In going back to Israel and ignoring his talks with Obama, Netanyahu is simply demonstrating to Americans and the World what the Palestinians have been saying for years: Israel break their word and can't stick to agreements. Netanyahu is already on thin ice: jumping up and down, or stamping his foot would be rather foolish.
Complain about this comment
Natanyahu has a few of his own aces SM. First he has about 200 to 400 nuclear weapons, some of them likely being thermonuclear. It's enough power to blow up the entire Middle East with plenty to spare. Second he has the support of the overwhelming majority of Americans. That's all he needs. Obama has far to many other problems on his plate to waste his time on this game that pretends anyone actually cares about the Palestinians. It's a non Issue.
Complain about this comment
Yeesh! These American Zionists are nuts! Why do they always seem easy to offend, and likewise, quick to offend others? It doesn't matter what you say or do they will always find something that they find offensive (as this news story shows: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/10/obama-phone-photo-seen-as_n_213693.html). Best thing to do is to ignore them and carry on as you would - they are the ones with the problem!
Complain about this comment
View these comments in RSS