Netanyahu is to travel to Washington where he is expected to meet Clinton and possibly President Barack Obama in their first meeting since the extraordinary flare-up that took Israel and much of the world aback. The eruption was ignited by Israel’s announcement of 1,600 more settler homes in East Jerusalem which coincided not only with a visit by Vice President Joe Biden but also with the eve of the proximity talks America had at last persuaded Mahmoud Abbas to enter with Netanyahu. Clinton believes the negotiating track will now be resumed after her 43-minute phone conversation with Netanyahu during which Clinton did most of the talking and Netanyahu most of the listening. The stinging comments surprised the Israeli premier for its unusual tone as well as for the list of demands made by Clinton on the Israeli government. These demands reportedly include canceling the decision to build the settler units at the Ramat Shlomo settlement, rolling back on plans for new Jewish homes, and making a “gesture of substance” toward Abbas sooner rather than later. That could be in the form of lifting some West Bank roadblocks, releasing an undisclosed number of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli detention camps and immediately resuming peace talks with the Palestinians, as well as expressing willingness to discuss all final status issues, including Jerusalem.
Netanyahu has yet to give a formal response to the US demarche. But it is unlikely that the American pressure will force Israel to bring about any change of substance in its settlement policy. The present Israeli leadership would rather dissolve the government and call for new elections than cave in to American pressure over the settlement issue. In fact, Netanyahu had no qualms later about telling the Knesset, “No government of Israel for the last 40 years has agreed to place restrictions on building in Jerusalem.”
There are plans for more building projects in many of the Jewish suburbs. Netanyahu would be hard put to stop them and survive politically. He may be able to cede to some of the items on Clinton’s wish list but not all, at least not without wrecking his coalition which is composed of extreme right-wing parties and factions.
Successive US administrations have behaved as though they need Israeli friendship more than Israel, a small country, is in need of the backing of US, a superpower. In the US Israel has always been a domestic policy. Obama is making all out efforts to win the 216 votes required for the passage of his historic health-care bill. This is hardly the time for him to risk a fight with Israel or its supporters in Congress over settlements or Jerusalem.
But the US president must surely know another climb down before Israel would incinerate what remains of his prestige and credibility in the Middle East. Obama and Clinton may never get a better chance to restore it.
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