Analysis: America’s 51st state? US pressure comes to bear on Israel

In recent days, a number of senior US officials have traveled to Israel: first special envoy Steve Witkoff, first vice president JD Vance, and then secretary of state Marco Rubio, first special envoy Steve Witkoff and first presidential adviser Jared Kushner, both of whom arrived on Monday.

Their goal has always been to stop the US-backed ceasefire agreement from being broken. And in essence, that means making sure that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Israeli government adheres to the two-year-old peace agreement that came into effect earlier this month.

More than 68,000 Palestinians were killed in the conflict in Israel as a result of the US officials’ presence being described as “babysitting,” an attempt to sling the arm of a far-right government desperate to find any excuse for resuming the occupation.

And so far, US President Donald Trump’s administration appears to have largely succeeded, highlighting what some analysts believe is Israeli subservience to the US and acknowledging that Israel will ultimately consent when Washington orders it to do something.

Israel is undoubtedly a US client state, according to Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli ambassador and consul general in New York. Pinkas referred to the billions of dollars that Israel receives from the US in aid, the numerous instances where Washington uses its veto to defy international law and its military support for Israel.

The Trump administration is now using that support to escalate relations between the two nations by imposing US demands on Israel and putting pressure on Israel in public.

Trump himself admitted to blocking Netanyahu from continuing the Gaza war in an interview that was released by Time Magazine on Thursday. Trump remarked, “You know, I stopped him because he would have just kept going.” It has the potential to drag on for years. ”

Trump also stated in a statement that if Israel attempted to annex the occupied West Bank, which its parliament or Knesset preliminaryly approved on Wednesday, it would lose “all support” from the US. Additionally, Vance criticized an Israeli parliamentary vote on annexation as being “very stupid.”

Even though members of his own government voted in favor and he himself has previously supported annexation, Netanyahu understood the message and called the vote a “political provocation.”

a disparate partnership

In terms of relations with Israel, the US has always been more powerful. Israel is an allies with the US, and it is the world’s superpower, with a historically large support base.

However, US governments have frequently tried to avoid any direct confrontation with Israel for whatever reason. In the first three months of the conflict in Gaza, former US President Joe Biden argued that Israel needed to be publicly supported to stop their attempt to destroy the Palestinian enclave.

Netanyahu repeatedly refused to cooperate with efforts to agree to a ceasefire, which was unsuccessful. Trump, who has taken the comparatively less confrontational path with Israel since his return to office, is incredibly well-liked in Israel for the support he gave the nation in his first term. It seems to be working so far.

According to Yossi Mekelberg, a senior consulting fellow at Chatham House, Benjamin Netanyahu has been placed on notice, according to Al Jazeera. The US team has the ability to say a lot of things. as they are doing –  but it is quite clear what their goals are.

Look at the remarks made by US special envoy Steve Witkoff and US presidential adviser Jared Kushner on the 60 Minutes program where they discussed betrayal and a loss of control. This, in my opinion, goes against all the Israeli press shows of friendliness. Trump’s administration is intervening, saying clearly, “You do as you are told. ‘”

In an interview that was broadcast by CBS News last week, Melkelberg claimed that both Kushner and himself felt “a little betrayed” by Israel’s decision to attack the Hamas negotiating team in Doha, Qatar in September. Kushner continued by highlighting how his father-in-law, Trump, felt that the Israelis were “going a little out of control with what they were doing, and that it was time to be very strong and stop them from doing things that he thought were against their long-term interests.”

That may help to explain why Trump has been so vocal criticizing Israeli actions despite his unmistakable support for Israel and his earlier disparaging of the Palestinians. Trump’s restraint of Israel is seen by his administration as benefiting both, highlighting the US’s position in the relationship and highlighting the US’s commitment to Israel.

Mitchell Barak, a former aide to Netanyahu, said that the US and Israel relations are at the heart of both nations’ policies. Israel is a valuable strategic partner for the US, according to the statement, “It is built on a shared sense of Judeo-Christian values”; It is crucial for both its regional policy and its advancements in innovation. ”

And what’s more, stability and peace are profitable for everyone, as we’re seeing from both the US business and the Trump family business, which are both heavily invested in the area. ”

There is no new in this, according to Barak, adding that it is true that Israel has lost some of its independence. In the US’s current management of the ceasefire, I believe that is what we are seeing. It combines carrot and stick, and Vance and the others are already there to remind you of it. ”

Trump can concentrate on what he thinks Netanyahu wants, political gain, and a resolution to the prime minister’s legal issues.

In a speech addressed to the Knesset to announce the ceasefire in early October, Trump demanded that Netanyahu be pardoned for his numerous corruption scandals that have plagued him since 2019.

Trump has the ability to do that, Mekelberg asserted. Netanyahu can say, “Look, I’ll come over,” he says. You follow the script, and I will talk to the Knesset and even ask for pardonation for you. ”

‘Hogwash’

Netanyahu has reportedly been riled by claims that Israel’s dealings with the US have lost a significant portion of its independence.

I want to express it very clearly. They claim that Israel has control over the United States after a week. They claim that the US is in charge of Israel a week later. In response to a question about Israel’s relationship with the US, the prime minister responded, “This is hogwash.”

Despite his protests about US control of Israel, the majority of the evidence disproves him. There are other instances where the Trump administration has influenced Israeli policy, besides the current US diplomatic blitz, which aims to ensure that Netanyahu executes the ceasefire.

The ceasefire itself was made during Netanyahu’s most recent visit to Washington, which some observers saw as a cover-up of Netanyahu’s decision to declare his intentions before going back to Israel.

Similar to the visit, Netanyahu was pressured into apologizing to Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani for the Doha strike. And crucially, Trump was the one who gave the order to stop a planned Israeli strike following the ceasefire’s conclusion in June when Israel’s 12-day war against Iran came to an end.

These actions, in the opinion of observers like Pinkas, serve as a sharp reminder of the asymmetrical nature of the US-Israel relationship, especially under the Trump administration.

Pinkas remarked, “They’re [also] defining Israel’s freedom of movement.” They are letting Netanyahu and others know they are free to travel without any prior notice, Netanyahu said.

Source: Aljazeera