What a Sorry Mess…writes Michael Kuttner
Surveying the international landscape at present, one is left with an unmistakable impression of chaos, danger and failed policies.
Michael Kuttner
The common denominator in all this mayhem is what I like to call the OK factor, translated simply as Obama/Kerry. The White House ably supported by the State Department are both demonstrating how easy it is to lose the trust of long time allies and at the same time provide those who threaten democratic and liberal States with a reason to continue on their chosen bully tactics. One has to give credit where it is due. No more diligent students of Chamberlain type diplomacy can surpass the efforts of the OK team. They get A plus for effort and another A plus for repeating the same failures time after failed time.
Needless to say those other international geniuses who hang on to their coat tails and mouth meaningless platitudes must also receive a passing grade so that when inevitable further aggression takes place and the bodies of those sacrificed in the name of endless diplomacy of the appeasing variety litter the globe, all those who failed to honour their promises to stand by their guarantees, will no doubt be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Obama already has claimed his without any noticeable success in spreading the mantle of peace and brotherhood and he can bask in the company of such peace luminaries as Yassir Arafat whose contribution consisted of terror and an ongoing rejection by his “peace loving” successors to accept the reality of a Jewish State.
The Ukrainian mess has temporarily displaced in the media the ongoing shambles with the Palestinian Arabs but a couple of points are worth noting. First, every time the OK team makes a pronouncement the situation worsens. Second, nobody in the White House or State Dept. is suggesting that the Ukrainians trade land for peace with the Russians. Funny that, seeing this is exactly the failed formula being forced on Israel despite such previous withdrawals having been spectacular flops. The Ukrainians are now waking up to the uncomfortable truth that international guarantees of territorial integrity are not worth the paper they are written on. The Czechs found this out the hard way via Munich and it should be a sobering lesson for Israel’s leaders as Washington makes similar meaningless promises.
A BBC documentary last week showed the rise of the Cossacks again and we should all know their past history in Russia and other parts of Eastern Europe.
However this current situation pans out you can be sure that the Jews will get the blame. Given the past sorry experiences in that country it remains a mystery to me why there are still 300,000 Jews living there. It seems another case of historical amnesia on a grand scale.
Now back to the OK team and Israel. Prior to the PM’s arrival in Washington a carefully orchestrated interview between the O part of the team and a tame U.S. anti Israel reporter was circulated in which the Israeli Government’s policies were derided and the building of homes for Jews was described as “aggressive”. Not only was this a calculated pre-emptive insult but the inevitable reaction from Abbas was that no more talks would be held until settlement building was stopped and for good measure until more murderers with Jewish blood on their hands were released. This week in another classic case of foot in mouth disease or more likely a deliberate OK agenda, a State Dept. spokeswoman stated that the Palestinian Arabs didn’t really need to recognize Israel as the Jewish State. This of course contradicts the UN itself which in 1947 called for the creation of a Jewish and Arab State. The fact that the Arabs rejected their State and tried to annihilate the Jewish one completely escapes the OK team who now compound the mess by urging the Palestinian Arabs to ignore and deny the Jewish People’s legal right. Needless to say this is a gift from Uncle Sam and therefore it comes as no surprise that Abbas and gang harden their positions even further.
In fact it gets better. Hanan Ashrawi, who can always be relied on to come out with some sort of poisonous pearl, stated the following: “the call to recognize Israel as the Jewish State would condone discrimination against Israel’s Arab minority, undermine refugee rights and encourage misuse of religion. Israel (presumably all of it) has been built on Palestinian land. We Palestinians have been here for centuries. We are the victims of Zionism who were expelled and placed under occupation.”
None of these venomous delegitimisations is new of course but they receive added legitimacy because the OK team encourages such positions. The PA team takes its lead from the nonsense burbled by the OK team and even worse is encouraged by the antics of some Israeli politicians. Whether it is those who make pilgrimages to Ramallah and lap up the rubbish spouted there or those who meet the OK team and whisper in their ears to ignore the objections of Israel’s elected Government, the end result is the same. A complete lack of understanding as to the disasters which will ensue if Iran and its surrogates are given control of Judea and Samaria and half of Jerusalem, is reinforced by unrelenting criticism of our security concerns. Oh yes, the right noises are sometimes heard but this is all a façade because at the end of the day even a kindergarten child could tell you that in a situation where worthless guarantees are given and the other side is encouraged to ignore not only a UN resolution but a legal entitlement, then the only result can be a disaster which would not only repeat the massacre of Jews in previous years but in fact surpass them
Meanwhile Iran has been caught by Israeli security forces again red handed and fully exposed as an exporter of terror and supporter of terrorist groups. What was Washington’s response? They proudly touted their assistance, slapped Iran on the wrist and then blandly stated that meaningless talks would continue as though nothing untoward had happened. This means that Iran continues to race towards the nuclear finish line while the OK team, assisted by the Baroness Ashton, keep prattling fruitlessly away. In a similar vein, much of the international media buries the Iran smuggling story if it reports it at all. No wonder Abbas and Rouhani are laughing and congratulating themselves on their unbelievable luck.
The bottom line is that the final outcome is preordained. Iran will achieve what it wants and Abbas and his team will, after rejecting a final end to the conflict as they have for 65 years, eventually run to the UN, try to organize an international conference where all the Israel haters can be represented and then bask in the inevitable condemnation of Israel which will cascade forth. Any steps Israel takes to either thwart Iranian genocidal actions or Arab terrorist ambitions will be condemned. The chorus of demonization will rise to a deafening crescendo and the choir will include not only the usual useful idiots, Jewish and non Jewish, but also those who profess to be our friends. The OK team has already stated that they will not be able to stop this. If ever a wink, nudge and nod was never so obviously clear, this is it.
As Jews worldwide celebrate the Festival of Purim this coming week it behooves us to remember that our deliverance from the machinations of latter day persecutors not only depends on divine help but also on our own determination to take the right action at the right time.
Two quotes sum up our current situation:
In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act (George Orwell)
The greatest enemy of truth is very often not the lie, deliberate, contrived and dishonest, but the myth, persistent, persuasive and unrealistic. (John F. Kennedy).
Michael Kuttner is a Jewish New Zealander who for many years was actively involved with various communal organisations connected to Judaism and Israel. He now lives in Israel and is J-Wire’s correspondent in the region.
Michael, although your article relates a truly skewered and dangerous situation,a black time indeed, nevertheless I like reading it for its acuity, its accuracy and the fact that it confronts things in simple, stark form. Most of your writing is of this nature.
You mention Hanan Ashrawi. I’ve always thought of her as particularly poisonous; you might remember she came to Sydney to receive the Peace Prize some years ago!
When living in Israel between 2003 – 2006 I was often taken aback at the naivety of Israelis who thought the world of the USA; I wonder what they’re thinking now.
Israel needs to stand forth with great determination on everything to do with its future and all those seemingly ‘confused’ Jews who are writing revisionist history, and bending over backwards to understand and empathise/commiserate with the lot of the Palestinians, should get their act together and rid themselves of illusions.