Prospects, Implications of Current Tensions in Biden-Netanyahu Relations

Strategic Council Online - Opinion: It would be simplistic if the verbal tensions between Biden and Netanyahu were interpreted as tensions in the relations between the US and the Zionist regime. Such an interpretation of Biden’s statements is incorrect and contrary to the facts governing their “strategic relations.” Barsam Mohammadi – Expert on regional affairs

Joe Biden, interviewed by Fareed Zakaria, a political analyst and the host of Fareed Zakaria GPS on CNN, said in a sharp statement on Sunday, July 9, that all Israel’s problem now is not in the West Bank but the opinion of some of the government members of Netanyahu about the settlements to blame partially. Criticizing Netanyahu’s government as “one of the most extreme” ones he has seen in his decades in politics, since Golda Meir until now, Biden said that the Israeli minister of finance and minister of national security are part of the problem of the occupied West Bank. In that interview, Biden expressed his hope that Netanyahu will step on the path of moderation.

Biden’s remarks against Netanyahu’s government have been met with the reaction of some of the officials of the Zionist regime’s cabinet. One of Netanyahu’s advisers has revealed that he (Netanyahu) said in response to the US president’s statements that Biden is very rude, even ruder than Obama, and even former President Barack Obama did not dare to speak this way.

Regarding the consequences of Biden’s recent statements, which have been widely reflected in the political and media circles of the region and the Zionist regime, and inside the United States, there are “thoughtful” points, the most important of which are as follows:

One, the words exchanged between the leaders of the Zionist regime and the United States should not be interpreted as tension in the relations between the United States and the Zionist regime. When Netanyahu was in office for the past three years, the US president made critical and sometimes harsh statements about Netanyahu and his approaches.

The recent statements of the US president are mainly against Netanyahu and the extreme policies of his cabinet. Biden believes in the gradual and slow advancement of Zionist policies in occupied Palestine and does not like Netanyahu’s harsh and inconsiderate approach. In addition, since he was Obama’s vice president, Biden has disagreed with Netanyahu, whose actions were against Obama. In addition, Netanyahu’s alliance with the Republicans against Biden in the 2020 presidential election has made him pessimistic about Netanyahu.

Despite this, in the long run, such an exchange of words will not weaken Washington-Tel Aviv relations at the “structural” level. It will not affect the general lines and direction of the US foreign policy towards the Zionist regime. However, it will overshadow some unique relations between the White House and the Zionist regime.

Two; although Biden’s comments are considered the harshest words against Netanyahu by an American president in the past 75 years, it does not mean that the “strategic dimensions” of the relations between the two sides are being questioned. Even today, the United States has the most important political, security, military, economic, etc., cooperation in the West Asian region with the Zionist regime.

Biden’s problem is with Netanyahu personally, not with Israel, so it is very unlikely that these verbal conflicts will spread beyond the level of politicians. Therefore, the main fight is between Biden and Netanyahu, not the US and Israel!

Three, unlike in the Cold War era, in today’s world, we no longer see “strategic alliances” between the US and other countries, even its European and regional allies. The era of such coalitions is over, but the Zionist regime is an exception to this rule.

Israel is the only regime with which Washington has a “strategic alliance.” Even the change of governments in the US has not been able to disrupt the US’s security, political, economic, and military commitments towards the Zionist regime.

Biden and his democratic government still consider themselves committed to providing and guaranteeing the security of the Zionist regime. Today, Biden still has the same opinion that he had during his representation in the Senate and the Obama administration; his famous statement that when he was a young senator, he said if he were a Jew, he would be a Zionist, but “you need not be a Jew to be Zionist.”

Four, Biden’s recent statements against Netanyahu are not unrelated to Netanyahu’s upcoming trip to China. Biden is “angry” about this. One of the main targets of this trip, for which a date has not yet been set, is to send a message to Washington that Israel has other diplomatic options to face criticism from the Biden administration and the Democrats. This is the same issue that has increased Biden’s anger toward Netanyahu.

Final point; it is quite clear that the US administration is “careful” that its criticism of the extreme policies of the Zionist regime would not be directed at the whole of the Israeli regime. The Zionist regime “relies” on the US administration to advance its strategic targets, and different governments in the United States have always supported the strategic policies of the Zionist regime in the region, despite the differences in tastes. As such that, the United States would be in a different and difficult situation without Israel! In the words of Biden, “If there were not an Israel, we’d have to invent one”!

Bezalel Smotrich, the Minister of Finance of the Zionist regime, whom Biden considers, along with Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Minister of National Security, to be part of the problem of extremism and conflicts in the West Bank, responded to Biden’s statements and said he respected the president of the United States. Cooperation and relations between the US and Israel are stronger than in the past, and there are also differences of opinion.

Israel remains the largest recipient of US military aid (4 billion dollars per year). In March 2022, in the second year of his administration, Biden allocated additional funding worth about 2 billion dollars for the defense system “Iron Dome”!

No group in the United States is as effective as the “Zionist lobby” in “decision-making” and formulating American regional and global policies. The existence of the Zionist lobby in different scenes of “politics and power” in the US is a “strong deterrent” factor in preventing the weakening of the relations between the two sides.

Therefore, it is simplistic if the verbal tensions between Biden and Netanyahu are interpreted as tensions between the US and the Zionist regime relations. Such an interpretation of Biden’s statements is incorrect and contrary to the facts governing their “strategic relations.”