Page 52 - HaMizrachi #25 Chanuka 2020 USA
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THE PEOPLE AND THE LAND ISRAEL INSIGHT
David M. Weinberg
Trump’s Mideast Innovations
Should Stick
any of the outgoing Trump press. These are all-American princi- agreement that took at face value Ira-
administration’s novel Mid- ples; they must not be soft-pedaled. nian denials of there being any nuclear
Meast policies should be This might nudge Palestinians, inshal- weapons program to worry about.
adopted by the next administration, lah, towards the replacement of their Because Trump defiantly dumped
even if Democratic leaders shrink from rejectionist leaders with men and Obama’s signature foreign policy
crediting Trump for any breakthroughs. women who seek peace and prosper- “achievement,” incoming President
There are three axes of Mideast policy ity for their people in partnership with Biden (who was Obama’s vice-presi-
that must not be abandoned. Israel. Younger Palestinians must know dent) surely will seek to entice Iran into
The first is the unleashing of a rewarding that the Palestinian national movement a renewed accord, and he will do so by
regional dynamic whereby Arab states will be marginalized in the Arab world lifting some sanctions against Tehran.
and in Western capitals unless they
This is probably the wrong way to go,
are moving to open partnership with come to the table with new leadership instead of increasing sanctions against
Israel on a wide range of issues. Already willing to compromise. Iran. Nevertheless, a new US adminis-
this has led to three peace agreements tration surely will understand that Iran
(between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain For American diplomats to start once must be forced to relent on several key
and Sudan). Additional Arab countries again scurrying about the region with- issues.
out pressing such inevitable truths on
should be encouraged to follow suit. the Palestinians would be worse than These are 1. A complete end to Iran’s
Sustaining this momentum requires mischievous; it would be disastrous. To nuclear military program, including all
active American diplomacy in support be overly solicitous of the Palestinians, a uranium enrichment and plutonium
of Arab-Israel rapprochement, with long-time mistake of professional peace production, with no sunset. 2. A truly
signals coming from the highest levels processors, would be unhelpful in the intrusive international inspections
in Washington and concrete offers extreme. regime. 3. An end to Iran’s ballistic mis-
of US aid on the table (yes, including Continuing to dial-down Palestinian sile development program. 4. A retreat
weapons). expectations would be much more from the forward bases in Syria that Iran
It also requires continuing stiff Amer- constructive. No administration should is building to challenge Israel. 5. Full ces-
ican resolve in opposing Iran’s hege- revert to stale and unworkable formu- sation of Iranian financing of Hamas and
monic designs in the region and resist- las based on maximalist Palestinian Hezbollah military capabilities.
ing the temptation to over-prioritize the demands and minimalist regard for Short of this, a new deal with Iran will
Palestinian issue – as detailed below. Israeli security needs and national-his- be perilous and unsustainable.
toric claims. I am referring, of course, One also would hope that any admin-
The second axis of intelligent Mideast to discredited formulas involving the
policy over the past four years has been uprooting of settlements, Israeli with- istration will continue to back the “war
treating Palestinians as responsible drawals from most of Judea and Samaria, between the wars” – Israel’s covert
adults. and a division of Jerusalem. strikes on Iranian sites in Syria and on
nuclear installations in Iran.
This means expecting the Palestinian The third and perhaps most important
governments in Judea, Samaria and plank of US policy is the attempt to The principles described here are in
Gaza to end their payments to terror- truly halt Iran’s advance towards nuclear America’s best interests as well as Isra-
el’s, and therefore they ought to survive
ists, disarm terrorist militias, ending weapons and its aggressive troublemak- a presidential transition.
attempts to brand Israel a war criminal ing across the region. There should be
in international courts, end the teach- no more American charity for Iranian
ing of genocidal anti-Semitism in their lies, including Iran’s vague commitments David M. Weinberg is vice president of
the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and
schools and media, and respect human under the JCPOA agreement negotiated Security, jiss.org.il. His personal site is
rights, religious freedoms, and a free by President Obama and the P5+1; an davidmweinberg.com.
Though war needs physical courage, peace needs moral courage,
the courage to break with the past and turn enemies into friends.
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