Abbas. Israeli support hurting him
Photo: AP
Stop praising them
Blatant Israeli support for US president or Arab leaders doesn’t help them – or us
“Bush is a true friend of Israel,” Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
declared repeatedly during the US president’s visit to Israel. Indeed, it appears that every candidate in the presidential primaries in the US is measured here by the “extent of his friendship” to Israel.
This was not the first time where such praise was lavished at President Bush by our leaders, and we have seen similar expressions with regards to other leaders as well. Only a week ago, Prime Minister Olmert was quoted by the Jerusalem Post as saying that he prays for the wellbeing of Egyptian President Mubarak every morning. During the Annapolis Conference, he praised Palestinian Chairman Mahmoud Abbas. Other Israeli politicians sometimes also go out of their way to praise their counterparts on the other side of the fence or border.
During Shimon Peres’ visit to Qatar about a year ago, when he was asked what he would do if he was a Palestinian he replied: If I were a Palestinian, I would be like Mahmoud Abbas.
It appears that our leaders fail to understand that such praise can ruin everything for us and for them. In Egypt, President Mubarak faces growing criticism from the Muslim Brothers, who repeatedly call for the annulment of the peace treaty with Israel. Hence, a prayer from Israel’s prime minister for the wellbeing of Mubarak would not necessarily help him reach old age. The same is true for Abbas. What is a Palestinian in the Gaza Strip, for example, supposed to think when he hears that Peres wants to be like Abbas? Would such Palestinian proceed to support Abbas or Hamas?
Honest mediator?
The same is true for Bush as well. Arab media outlets are trying to outdo each other with harsh words of criticism regarding the American president and his visit to the region. At the same time, the president himself declares that he believes that it is possible to bring about a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians within a year. What are people in the Arab world supposed to understand? That the US president, who Olmert refers to as “a true friend of Israel,” is an honest mediator between the sides, or merely a pawn at Israel’s service, as Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah recently claimed?The time has come to realize that President Bush may really like Israel, yet this does not mean that he is pro-Israeli by definition and forever. The president of the United States has its own agenda. At times it is commensurate with Israel’s agenda, and on other occasions it contradicts it. When the two positions will clash, allow me to assume that the American position will win over. This was the case throughout history: The Yom Kippur War ended at the junction chosen by the Americans, while utilizing brutal pressure and threats from President Nixon and Secretary of State Kissinger calling on Israel to immediately stop the war; this prevented us from completely demolishing Egypt’s army and scoring a clear military victory.
This was also the case in the Camp-David talks with Egypt, and also during the First Gulf War when the Americans pressed Israel to stay out. There are more examples like this. The US has a different policy and different point of view on the region, so there is no point in crowing presidents with titles such as “friend” or “foe.” He is the American president, this is his job, and his policy is American, not Israeli.
And a final word about titles: There are plenty of them aside from “friend of Israel.” A leader can be referred to as “brave,” “visionary,” “strong,” or any other adjective that would not serve to “disqualify” him at the same time. Calling someone “a friend of Israel” will only serve to reinforce the stubbornness of those who do not necessarily like us.
