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Photo: Gabi Menashe
Danny Rothschild
Photo: Gabi Menashe

The negative wave

Israel’s ability to cope with enemies becoming increasingly constrained

Countless words have been written summing up the past decade and even more so written about the decade to come. Close examination of geostrategic trends does not leave much room for optimism. The farther into the horizon one focuses, the greater the threats and optimism declines.

 

The Israeli architects of the coming decade will have to cope with the impending and ever intensifying negative wave. An examination of Israel’s national strength on the commencement of the new decade indicates a decline in most of its key elements.

 

Israel is facing growing international pressure. Although the official attitude of the industrialized countries has not changed, they have adopted a de facto active policy toward realizing their interests. The US, Israel’s closest strategic ally, is leading a policy aimed at balancing between its growing need to forge an alliance with the moderate Arab countries and its traditional support of the Jewish state.

 

The range of threats against Israel is also growing. Our ability to cope in a creative and independent way with those who seek to harm us is becoming more and more constrained. Between the balance of international interests and division of the declining global economic resources Israel’s position is getting ever less favorable.

 

In a realistic analysis of the geopolitical situation our weakness stands out in the light of the inferiority of our moral ground. International understanding towards Israel’s need to cope with Islamic terrorism is eroded in the face of the distorted propaganda forwarded by terrorist organizations. The growing hold of terrorist organizations in southern Lebanon and the Gaza Strip where they entrench themselves among civilian populations makes conventional military responses difficult.

 

The military balance that is so vital to the survival of Israel in light of strategic threats becomes a liability in an incessant confrontation with the tactical dimension of Palestinian terrorism.

 

Renaissance revolution needed

Despite the threats and challenges, Israel has not learned to handle the weakness of body and soul from within that makes it hard to take advantage of opportunities and realize them. Our system of governance is ill and malignant. The result is that Israel lacks a national strategy, and in the rare cases where there is a constant policy, it is almost impossible to implement it due to our weakness in imposing strategic discipline.

 

An ostensibly stable government is purchasing a defensive margin in the opposition because it is not confident of its governing majority. The size of the government and the number of portfolio holders do not reduce the threat of losing its ability to govern.

 

The State of Israel in the second decade of the 21st century had not yet decided about its nature, character and values. It continues to go from one crisis to the next; between fighting an existential threat and coalition pressures; emergency tax on water and hasty purchase of flue vaccinations. The national educational system does not enjoy the preference it should have had; a smaller part of the population fulfill their civil duty of military and national service although the existential threat has not disappeared; the Jewish essence of the state has not been secured and its democratic nature is too often being tested.

 

Zionism is an activist movement. Its power resides in changing reality rather than being the captive of the existing situation. The Zionist movement must find the strength to look at Israel internally. In light of this challenge, it must generate a deep Renaissance revolution. Only the crystallization of true principles that express the boundaries of agreement and compromise within the Zionist majority would secure the survival of the Jewish state and renew the ethos that is so badly needed for the people of Israel in the 21st century.

 

Maj. Gen (res.) Danny Rothschild, Director of the Institute for Policy and Strategy, Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya and Chairman of the Herzliya Conference Series

 


פרסום ראשון: 01.29.10, 14:34
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