Anyone who regularly peruses both local and international media will note the gap between the headlines here and those on foreign sites. It indicates Israel’s blindness to what is happening beyond Ben Gurion Airport, especially in the United States, and reflects a continuing disregard for the possibility of severe consequences.
With my first cup of coffee, I open Israeli news sites. I read about rocket barrages and their impact, that another senior Iranian figure was eliminated, that cooperation with American forces is unprecedented, that the wife of New York’s mayor shared pro-terror content, and that heavy rain is expected, with flood warnings.
Occasionally, a columnist warns of damage to Israel’s global standing, particularly in the U.S. But such concerns are often pushed aside by developments like reality show gossip, or the prime minister and his allies’ assault on the newly appointed legal adviser to the Central Elections Committee - if they don’t undermine her credibility now, how will they challenge election results that threaten to separate them from their seats and budgets?
With my second morning coffee, I turn to international sites and like with local media, I don’t rely on just one side’s opinions. In recent days, most of the sites I opened featured a prominent item, sometimes a headline, about the growing gap between the United States and Israel regarding the war and its objectives.
In other words, while here it may seem that despite minor misunderstandings, Trump and Netanyahu, almost Siamese twins, do not move without each other, a glance at world media reveals a growing problem whose trajectory is uncertain.
What is the Israeli government doing about this, beyond branding anyone who doesn’t say “amen” to its every move as “antisemitic” or “leftist”? What discussions are taking place at the Foreign Ministry? How is the Defense Ministry preparing for potential consequences? Is the Diaspora Affairs Ministry consulting Jews around the world about their ongoing distress, and does it also listen to critics of government among them?
Tova HerzlFor the sake of argument, let us assume that Trump sets policy only after careful, fact-based consideration. Let us agree that the war’s objectives are clear to him, and that he does not redefine them from one moment to the next, sometimes within a single interview. Let us suppose that neither ego nor family business interests guide him, and that Israel has never had a greater friend in the White House. Agreed?
Trump cannot run again, and in 2029, a new president will be sworn in. No one can guess now whether it will be a Republican or a Democrat, but in both parties, Israel’s standing has deteriorated significantly in recent years. Moreover, in a poll published the day before the outbreak of the second Iran war, for the first time, Palestinians received more sympathy than Israelis. The gap is not big, 5 percent, but just a year ago it stood at 46-33 in Israel’s favor.
Many Israelis are not aware that the American system differs from Israel’s in two fundamental ways. First, lawmakers are elected in geographic districts. In order to be elected, the positions they present must appeal to voters, rather than a party leader or a political apparatus, as is the case here. Second, every dollar that leaves the Treasury requires agreement between the administration and both houses of Congress. Even with a supportive president, congressional support is therefore vital for Israel. All the more so if the president is less friendly, and a counterweight is needed.
Anyone who says Israel should do only what is good for itself, regardless of public opinion, fails to understand that the two are intertwined. No country can behave as if it exists alone in the universe, certainly not a small, resource-poor, and threatened state. What will we do - manufacture our own submarines and fighter jets? Without an American veto, how will we cope with international sanctions?
Those who believe “it will be fine” or are convinced that “Heaven will help” are welcome to ignore the link between world opinion and Israel’s future. But for those who believe that hoping for a miracle is not a plan - well, what then is the plan? Is anyone thinking about the future, planning beyond the next sortie, the next targeted killing, the next headline?
- Tova Herzl is a former Israeli ambassador to South Africa and the Baltic countries, and served as liaison between the U.S. Congress and the Israeli Embassy in Washington