Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu,
Source: WikiMedia Commons
Avner Cohen
July 17, 2015
The following is an excerpt of an article that was originally published in Ha’aretz. (Registration required.)
[…]The agreement, which in Western capitals has been presented as one that will distance Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb, a victory of diplomacy over force and proof that a diplomatic solution to Iran’s nuclear program is possible, has been portrayed in Jerusalem as an Iranian trap that includes short-term tactical concessions in favor of long-term nuclear progress. It has been presented as an Iranian plot constituting an existential threat to Israel. While the world applauds American diplomacy, Israel remains suspicious, grumbling and angry.
That’s not only how the government reacted but also how (almost) the entire Zionist political spectrum in the country did […] arguing that when it comes to the Iranian issue […] world leaders are political novices who in their naïveté don’t understand the Iranian trick, whereas Israel and its leaders are the only ones who see the true picture. The United States and its partners are deluded into thinking that the agreement creates a safer world, while only realistic, wise Israel knows that it make it more dangerous.
Give me a break.
[…]When it comes to the bottom line, a complex compromise was achieved that from Israel’s standpoint has good and less good elements. Diplomatic wisdom requires Israel, in close coordination with the United States particularly on the intelligence level, to put together a package of understandings that will compensate and balance the problematic and weaker parts of the agreement. If Israel manages to create such a package, it will certainly be able to live with the agreement.
More importantly, there is a much deeper reason why the agreement is good for Israel. It’s good because it contains the potential to drastically change the Israeli agenda and the Israeli condition. […]
Read the full article on Ha’aretz.com. (Registration required.)
