Published: 31 July 2023
Last updated: 5 March 2024
The White House has a strong impulse to find a way to move forward with Israel. Meanwhile, evangelical supporters of Israel are surprisingly neutral about the political unrest.
As Netanyahu pushes Israel toward illiberalism, some believe Washington should cut its close ties with the state, including rethinking military aid to Israel, as New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof argued last week.
Yet there is a strong impulse within the Biden administration to find a way to move forward with Israel. This comports not only with President Joe Biden’s own views, but also with the wider aims of his administration toward the Middle East.
These plans are rooted not in support for democracy in the region (where there is very little democracy), but in concerns over the future US posture there. It is a vision based on promoting regional stability and integration, and shaped by the US competition with China and Russia.
In this context, on the eve of Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit to Washington earlier this month, in a call with Netanyahu, Biden seemed to imply an invitation for a meeting between the leaders. The impulse to work with Israel, and its prime minister, remains strong.
Meanwhile, evangelical supporters of Israel, who have long taken sides in the country’s politics, are neutral about the recent political unrest.
America’s Israel Conundrum By Natan Sachs (Foreign Affairs)
The right way to use US leverage with Netanyahu
Israel’s Current Crisis Exposes Christian Zionism’s Contradictory Ideals (Newlines)
Evangelical supporters of the country, who have long taken sides in the country’s politics, are neutral about the recent political unrest
Netanyahu and Trump: two desperate men exploiting power to save themselves (Guardian)
Israeli PM growing increasingly Trumplike in willingness to turn a personal crisis into a national one to stay in power and out of jail
US Democrats Advance Congressional Resolution in Support of Israel's Protest Movement (Haaretz)
The resolution is said to reflect the opinion of the Democratic voter base, serving as a 'warning sign' to Prime Minister Netanyahu and giving strength to the pro-democratic Israeli public
Photo: US President Joe Biden with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in the White House, July 18, 2023
