Last Wednesday’s meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden led to a softening in US-Israel ties following a 10-month period of distance.
It should also be noted that Netanyahu paid a price to bring about a turnaround in Biden’s attitude, mostly by ignoring the bad agreement reached by Biden with Iran, including billions of dollars.
It seems that the restraint that the IDF is exhibiting in Judea and Samaria, as well as Netanyahu’s decision to bolster the Palestinian Authority, also resulted from pressure from Washington. Biden is also urging Netanyahu to reach a consensus on the judicial reform.
New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman says in his latest piece that Biden put on a “master class” in forcing PM Netanyahu to choose between his coalition and a peace deal with the Saudis. Among the conditions Netanyahu would have accept in exchange for normalization with Saudi Arabia, as outlined in the article, would be curbing Jewish construction in Judea and Samaria, improving living and travel conditions for Palestinian Arabs there, advancing Palestinian Arab administration over more of their populated areas in accordance with the Oslo Accords and in essence agreeing to steps on the ground that preserve the option of a two-state solution.
It’s obvious the pressures from Biden were to be expected but did Netanyahu also appease Washington? If so, at what cost to Israel? Could it be that Netanyahu knows since Biden has only one year left in office that he can play nice with him, make Biden think he’s appeasing him, and still protect Israel’s interests?
Sources:
US-Israel ties are back on track, by Ariel Kahana/Israel Hayom, September 21, 2023