Prime Minister Netanyahu is heading for Germany on Wednesday where he will ask German Chancellor Angela Merkel to convince the EU to try to restrain the 'Palestinians' from further unilateral steps. For now, at least, he is not caving in on all that new construction and planning in 'east' Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria. The problem is that Netanyahu talks a good talk but has been
known to cave in the past.
Netanyahu gave an indication of what he will say in Europe,
telling a gathering of the National Public Diplomacy Forum that met on Tuesday
to summarize Operation Pillar of Defense, that the Gaza “war” was over Israel’s
existence.
“We left territories we took during the Six Day War, such as
Gaza, and they fire rockets on us,” he said. “The root of the conflict is not
the settlements, not the territories; it is the very existence of Israel and
their desire to wipe us off the map.”
The prime minister’s message,
according to the officials, will be that if the Palestinians continue with
provocative steps, Israel reserves the right to respond.
He will say that
it is important for the Europeans to use their influence with the Palestinians
to encourage a positive dynamic, not a negative one.
This message is one
that Israeli officials have been telling their European interlocutors since the
tidal wave of criticism over the recent settlement plans began: The ball is in
the EU’s court, and they should get the Palestinians to avoid further unilateral
steps.
What could go wrong?
Netanyahu is simply following the political winds at home... which lean to the Right.
ReplyDeleteHis calculation being that if he caves, he will lose votes not to his Left but to his Right.
And the Likud caucus is even further to the right to Netanyahu himself.
The political demographics in Israel have shifted over the last 20 years and Europe and America are in deep denial about contemporary Israel.
And Israeli patience with the Arabs has run out.