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How "Ironclad" Are Promises to Israel from Allies?

(JNS) Douglas J. Feith and Ze'ev Jabotinsky - Israelis, like Americans, often have excessive faith in the trustworthiness of promises from abroad. This applies to arms-control and peacekeeping arrangements, diplomatic accords, mutual-defense agreements and membership in multilateral organizations. But one should be realistic. Commitments from foreign powers are never "ironclad." When Hamas started this war on Oct. 7, President Biden declared: "We stand with Israel." He promised U.S. arms for Israel "to make sure that Israel does not run out of these critical assets to defend its cities and its citizens." His commitment to Israel, Biden said, is "ironclad." Yet later he began withholding delivery of munitions. He now emphasizes stopping the fighting and protecting Gazan civilians rather than destroying Hamas's remaining military and governing capabilities. This is emboldening Israel's enemies, which increases the danger to Israeli civilians. International commitments are only as strong as the interests of the people who make them. In no event are they enforceable, even if written down or called "legally binding." There is a State of Israel now because Zionists grasped that no other country in the world would or could assign top priority to the safety of the Jewish people. That was true when the other country was Britain, and it's true even when it is the U.S. This is not because of antisemitism but human nature. Sovereign states take care, first and foremost, of their own people. And sometimes they do not succeed in rightly identifying and protecting their own national interests. For 2,000 years, Jews had no choice but to depend on others for refuge, tolerance and security. As a result, they suffered centuries of maltreatment, including murders and massacres, expropriation and expulsion. Israel should, of course, maintain and cultivate connections with the U.S. and other powers. But Zionism is, in essence, about the Jewish people taking responsibility for their own fate. That people's survival is a top priority in only one country because the Jews are the majority in only one country. Alliances can be useful, but history warns that when life-and-death issues are at stake, endangered countries should rely no more than is necessary on foreigners. Douglas J. Feith, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, served as Undersecretary of Defense in the George W. Bush administration. Ze'ev Jabotinsky, the grandson of Zionist leader Ze'ev Jabotinsky (1880-1940), served as a pilot in the Israeli Air Force.
2024-05-30 00:00:00
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