[Washington Post] Editorial - It was not hard to discern the incipient cracks in U.S.-Israeli relations behind the show of friendliness between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu at the White House on Monday. The cracks need not widen into a split. The administration's strategy seems to center on broadening Israeli-Palestinian talks to include Arab states and outside powers such as the EU and Russia. All would have in common the interest of thwarting Iran's outsized regional ambitions. Obama's envoy, George Mitchell, has been seeking to broker initial confidence-building measures that might include Arab grants of overflight rights or trade privileges to Israel in exchange for a settlement freeze. Netanyahu is intrigued by the potential of a de facto Israel-Arab alliance on Iran. It may be that a mere show of U.S. sleeve-rolling on the peace process, along with pro forma Israeli cooperation, will provide adequate cover for Arab states that are eager to join in an anti-Iranian alliance.
2009-05-20 06:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive