With no progress to show for months of effort in trying to get a new peace process going in Israel, diplomats say that the Trump Administration is increasingly “fed up” with Israeli officials, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in particular.
“They want us to implement confidence-building measures in relation to the Palestinians, and we say no to every request,” one Israeli diplomatic source was quoted as saying. He added the US had increasingly urged Israel to remove checkpoints or allow Palestinians more building rights on Palestinian soil, but that Israel keeps citing security concerns to refuse.
Israel has also had a settler representative at every meeting, and they’ve objected to ever US proposal. Given how desperate the Israeli coalition is for settler support, this always stops any US proposal dead in its tracks.
The biggest problem, officials say, is how dismissive Netanyahu appears every time discussions of a Palestinian state, or making any progress at all, comes up. The expectation seems to be that Israel can keep delaying the process until the US gives up.
Why not. It worked every time before.
Bianca, What say you about MbS at this point…???
This is VERY good news. Until now the interior of Trump’s skull like Capitol Hill has been Israeli occupied territory.
But Trump knows from dealing with the Manhattan real estate sharks when he is being had.
If so, that may open his mind on Iran. And if that occurs, the door is open to a deal for a more peaceful MENA.
“Trump ‘Fed Up’ With Netanyahu”
I’ll believe it when Trump shouts/screams at Netanyahu like he did to Abbas!!!
Yea he is so fed up he is going to go to war against Iran to show nutyahoo who is boss and throw in a few billion his way just to show how upset he is.
But not “fed up” enough to cut off military “aid.”
Imagine what the billions of US taxpayer $$$$ that is sent to Israel each year by our Congress could have done to get Puerto Rico (and the US citizens who live there) back online. We would actually get something back from the Puerto Ricans (like taxes) as opposed to the finger from the Israelis.
I wonder if the the problem of military aid is not a result of the fact that Israel is not an ally of the United States- it’s an objective.
The security of Israel is an objective of the government of the United States, even more so than the prosperity of places that are actually part of the United States like Puerto Rico, as we have seen.
Perhaps, in fact, the highest objective of the United States. Example: an American city was destroyed while the helicopters that could have rescued thousands were busy on the other side of the globe, fighting a war for Israel.
For a lot of people the point of the government of the United States is to protect Israel. An objective, not an ally.
I would really like to believe that when you say “…a lot of people…” you’re not talking about Americans…but I’m probably being naive and fooling only myself. If you’re correct, then the divisive issues we are contending with right now are understandable. If “a lot of people” don’t understand why it isn’t the responsibility of the US to protect Israel then the task of uniting the American people under a single purpose is infinitely more complicated.
We have not fought any war for Israel.
…..and as long as the powerful Israel Lobby exists, we never will.
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On tuesday I got a great new Land Rover Range Rover from having earned $11752 this last four weeks..with-out any doubt it’s the most-comfortable job I have ever done .. It sounds unbelievable but you wont forgive yourself if you don’t check itGoogleNetJobsTopWorkFromHome…..
If we didn’t give money to Israel, it would not go to Puerto Rico. It would be used for tax cuts for the rich.
The Israelis have made improvement to our weapons. Israel uses the money to buy weapons from us which puts lots of Americans to work.
“The Israelis have made improvement to our weapons.”
and then sold them to china
“… sold them to china”
or ISIS or Al-Qaeda or …
Remember Iran Contra………… we always forget the other two players America and ISRAEL, where were the arms coming from that Iran was buying ………..Israel!
Israelis aren’t any smarter in weapons development than any other advanced country.
Israel doesn’t use all of the money for weaponry and improving on ways to kill people shouldn’t be something you should be proud of. They’re allowed to use a percentage of our tax dollars on anything they please. So having hundreds of millions to spend on such a small country(and growing) is quite the windfall. Imagine picking out a state each year and giving them 900 million dollars to spend on their infrastructure. Think it would help that state?
We give aid to many countries & get nothing in return.
From Israel, we get advances in weapons, science, engineering, high tech, & medicine.
We get nothing but Israel gets plenty. You think our aid to the Saudis and Egyptians isn’t conditional?
Puts American to work and Palestinians, Arabs and Persians in graves. I think there is a smarter play here.
It only puts people in their graves if they attack Israel.
The rich pay the most taxes, so they should get the biggest cuts.
Israel uses the money to buy weapons from us which puts lots of Americans to work
… in order to advance a dirty business:
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/10/israel-maintains-robust-arms-trade-rogue-regimes-171022100816302.html
Trump is not Obama. The Israelis better not treat him like he was but I hope they do. They’ll find themselves off the map quicker than Hillary Clinton.
As much as I despise Trump, I do believe that Trump naively thought he could eventually bask in the glory of showing the world what a master ‘deal’ negotiator he is. I will withhold my criticism of Trump in this particular case, except perhaps for his thinking he could actually work with Netanyahu.
I love it when they say The Palestinians ‘don’t want peace’!
Palestinians leaders have become very wealthy. Arafat had a net worth of $1 billion, Abbas $100 million, Abu Marzouk $2-3 billion, Khaled Mashaal, $2.6 billion. It literally pays not to make peace.
And for arguments sake, what is the net worth for the top Israelis like Netanyahoo, Bennett, Leiberman, etc., since they’re also not interested in peace.
Netanyahu $11 million
Bennett $7 million
Once you get over a million and lifetime pensions, what’s another million or two?
http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/42690-the-paradise-papers-show-there-s-all-kinds-of-people-who-have-their-snouts-in-the-trough
True. It pays the Israeli regime billions per year and the Palestinian Authority hundreds of millions of dollars per year. And that’s not counting aid to Arab regimes like Egypt’s. Those welfare checks would stop if the various regimes stopped threatening to go to war with each other (and occasionally doing so at low intensity and/or for short periods).
Plus, I believe it “pays” the Israeli regime in a much more favorable way.
I don’t think that Israeli leaders have become as personally wealthy as have Palestinian leaders.
Right, so that means our aid and support has been one sided but in the Palestinians favor.
Trump is surprised that Israel never wants peace? Someone better straighten him out fast. It’s not nice to to mess with the Israel lobby.
Don’t worry, if it gets close to the appearance of serious negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis, a false flag operation with occur which will throw it all back to the starting point, with Israel using the same tactic they have for decades of not being able to negotiate with terrorists.
And that is the crux of the biscuit.
Delay until the US gives up? Gives up what — peace, or working with the Israelis?
The US could go unilateral. Trump is like that. Then the US could get the UN to impose the deal. The EU and others would go along.
It has always been the US that has worked with Israel to prevent that. It is the US working with Israel that is the problem, and the US could give up that.
“Israel” better hurry up and cut a deal. Syria, Lebanon, Iran, China, Russia, Egypt and other countries are becoming the real Middle East players. Saudi Arabia is destined for the pages of history.. “Israel” will be also, if it doesn’t play nice – and fast. Its nukes are worthless with today’s defensive abilities.
antarcticus,
As you say – Russia is poised to become the “impartial referee” that the Mid East has hoped that the USA would be. The USA (at least its politicians like the Clintons) was bought cheaply by Israel to always rule in Israel’s favor. And if you ever wonder why the Washington Establishment hates Russia so much there you have it – Russia is committing the big sins – 1. making our military look foolish by Russia winning in Syria while we flail in Afghanistan and Iraq, 2. showing Israel how truly worthless our “bought” politicians are, and 3. bringing real justice to the area scotching Israel’s “big Theft” plans.
What “big Theft” plans?
And so the path of every other administration. After accusing the previous administration of being unreasonable, uncooperative with Israel, and making unreasonable demands, the latest crew of Americans gets in a room with the Israelis and finds out the real story.
This time, though, I’m sure the Israeli side is a bit surprised. Jarred arrives in Israel and it turns out that he didn’t know that it was all a charade, all along?
I’m sure they have explained it to him, now.
“And what if Netanyahu nonetheless responds with a qualified answer?
“That would be bad,” the source said. “In that case, it would become
clear that we had succeeded in quarreling even with the most fawning
administration of all time. That takes a special talent, no?””
The only way to convince Israel to seek peace is to cut military aid to the country; Hit their pocket book and they will listen. Sending people like Friedman and Kushner to Israel is a stupid and fruitless strategy they both hold allegiance to Israel First.
“The Palestinians don’t want peace” is no different a statement than “Jews use the blood of Christian babies in their Purim biscuits.” It’s a collectivist statement about an entire population. You might want to cut back on the hate speech if you want to keep posting here.
Excellent retort, Thomas!!
Israel is irreversibly committed to keeping much of the West Bank regardless of the cost. No Palestinian government can accept a state composed of the rump of the West Bank that Israel might relinquish. This problem has no solution.
In the 1960’s and ’70’s Israel could make a good claim to be a democracy modelled after the US. They made genuine efforts to include Arabs and Christians as full citizens. Since then, Israel has become an increasingly nasty bigoted theocracy. Support for Israel can no longer be assured by advertising its virtues.
Ordinary Americans have nothing in common with a country who judges a person’s worth by their religion. America has plenty of problems at home and doesn’t need to be entangled in the mess that Israel has created.
American’s support for Israel will gradually wither. Israel alone will have to carry the increasing burden of suppressing the growing Palestinian population.
“allow Palestinians more building rights on Palestinian soil,”
How dare they????
Trump in his busy life has not noticed the Israeli behavior since 1967 or earlier.
You cannot reason with a genocidal, apartheid regime such as Israel.