Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA:

Consider this revelation:

<< Netanyahu slammed the PA, especially its Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, for
lobbying the OECD member states against admitting Israel into the
organization. The PA’s efforts, Netanyahu said, were “a form of economic
warfare not compatible with peace, and we view it very gravely. It is a very
provocative action, but not something we used to stop the peace talks. We
disapprove of it greatly, but it has not been a reason to curtail the
talks.”

Netanyahu also said that this form of Palestinian “economic warfare” was
incompatible with Israel’s attempts to build economic peace with the PA.

“This is not the idea of peace we have,” he said, “and should not be the
idea of peace they have.”

Netanyahu, who was effusive in his praise of OECD secretary-general Jose
Angel Gurria for ensuring that the decision to accept Israel would be made
on the basis of economic, not political considerations, said he discussed
the PA efforts with the Americans. He said the US also used its influence to
help ensure Israel’s acceptance into the organization. >>

Simply put, the United States of America had to call favors with the OECD
members to convince them to ignore the Palestinian request to blackball
Israel.

Now here are the obvious questions that follow:

#1. Why hasn't the U.S. openly criticized the PA for their action? This
when Washington is ready at the drop of a hat to slam Israel?

#2. When will American friends of Israel complain that the Obama
Administration is remaining silent about this and other PA activity that
undermines confidence in their sincerity to make progress in the "peace
process" with Israel?

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OECD entry shows Israel's prominence
By SHARON WROBEL AND HERB KEINON The Jerusalem Post 11/05/2010 02:57
www.jpost.com/Business/BusinessNews/Article.aspx?id=175208

PM: We are on path to become one of the most advanced economies.

Beyond the considerable economic significance of Israel’s acceptance on
Monday into the OECD, the move is diplomatically important because it shows
that regardless of the political process, Israel has a “place among the
nations due to its economic and technological prowess,” Prime Minister
Binyamin Netanyahu told The Jerusalem Post.

A clearly satisfied Netanyahu said in a telephone interview with the Post
that while the acceptance into the organization did “not substitute [for]
the need to advance toward peace,” it “certainly enhances Israel’s national
prestige and begins to create a niche for Israel in the 21st century as a
technological and economic force to be reckoned with.”

Asked whether, coming at the beginning of renewed talks with the
Palestinians, there was a message here for the Palestinian Authority,
Netanyahu slammed the PA, especially its Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, for
lobbying the OECD member states against admitting Israel into the
organization.

The PA’s efforts, Netanyahu said, were “a form of economic warfare not
compatible with peace, and we view it very gravely. It is a very provocative
action, but not something we used to stop the peace talks. We disapprove of
it greatly, but it has not been a reason to curtail the talks.”

Netanyahu also said that this form of Palestinian “economic warfare” was
incompatible with Israel’s attempts to build economic peace with the PA.

“This is not the idea of peace we have,” he said, “and should not be the
idea of peace they have.”

Netanyahu, who was effusive in his praise of OECD secretary-general Jose
Angel Gurria for ensuring that the decision to accept Israel would be made
on the basis of economic, not political considerations, said he discussed
the PA efforts with the Americans. He said the US also used its influence to
help ensure Israel’s acceptance into the organization.

The PA’s efforts to block the move failed, Netanyahu said, because when an
economic organization like the OECD is faced with “the very clear
performance of the Israeli economy over the last decade, it became clear and
apparent that this could not be discounted because of political
interference.”

The acceptance of Israel as a full member of the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development is expected to boost foreign investment and
speed up socioeconomic reforms.

“For over 15 years, Israel has been advancing the process of joining the
club of elites and being accepted as a member of the leading economies of
the world,” Netanyahu said at a press conference in Jerusalem.

“Acceptance to the OECD was made possible thanks to Israel transforming into
a developed country with a free market, while also strictly adhering to
responsible and balanced economic policies in recent decades. These policies
included reduction of Israel’s debt, maintaining fiscal and development
policies, cutting taxes and making the capital market more sophisticated,”
the former finance minister continued.

At a meeting in Paris on Monday, OECD countries unanimously agreed to invite
Israel, Estonia and Slovenia to become members of the organization, paving
the way for its membership to grow to 34 countries.

Netanyahu thanked the OECD’s secretary-general, saying Jose Angel Gurría had
taken it as a personal goal to lead the process.

“Estonia, Israel and Slovenia, along with Chile [which] has just deposited
its instrument to become a full member, will contribute to a more plural and
open OECD that is playing an increasingly important role in the global
economic architecture,” Gurría said. “This new chapter in the history of the
organization confirms our global vocation as the group of countries that
search for answers to the global challenges, and establish standards in many
policy fields such as environment, trade, innovation or social issues.”

In a statement, the OECD lauded Israel’s scientific and technological
policies for producing outstanding outcomes on a world scale.

“I want to thank the 31 member states for voting in favor of our joining the
organization. Any one of them could have vetoed our inclusion. They chose
not to do so,” Netanyahu said. “At a time when we keep hearing lamentations
over Israel’s international isolation,” this was a particularly welcome sign
of Israel’s firm international standing.

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, currently in Japan, welcomed the OECD’s
decision and said it was the product of years of diplomatic efforts. It was
“a stamp of approval for the country’s economy and its achievements in
technology,” he said in a statement.

Lieberman said Israel’s acceptance into the organization, despite efforts by
“anti-Israel entities” to block the move, was proof of the country’s “solid
standing” in the international community.

“The OECD decision to invite Israel to become a member of the organization
is an important step toward Israel’s integration into the global economy,
and is an expression of Israel’s commitment to meet the highest
international standards,” Bank of Israel Governor Prof. Stanley Fischer
said.

Fischer added that joining the OECD would strengthen investors’ confidence
with regard to Israel’s economic standing, and would encourage investment in
the economy.

“Becoming a member of the OECD, Israel will be recognized as a developed
economy alongside the most developed economies in the world,” Netanyahu
said. “There are certain funds abroad that have to invest a great portion of
their money only in developed countries, so that Israel’s membership in the
organization will extend the range of potential investors in Israeli bonds
and in the Israeli economy.”

Fischer expressed the hope that working with the OECD would help advance
several economic reforms in Israel, including improving the education
system, raising the rate of participation in the labor force, reducing
economic inequality, and protecting the environment.

Fischer also emphasized the importance of the OECD’s work in identifying
bureaucratic obstacles via its index of marketing regulations.

At the press conference, Netanyahu said that although a number of major
reforms implemented in recent years had already contributed to the
development of a strong and open economy, there were a number of reforms
that the government planned to advance over the coming year as part of
conforming to the standards and norms of OECD member countries.

“This year we are planning to advance the reforms within the Israel Lands
Administration and the construction sector to clear the bureaucratic
bottlenecks involved in releasing land [for use], and we are going to
implement a national infrastructure plan to connect citizens to all parts of
the country,” the prime minister said. “Furthermore, over the next year, we
are going to deal with the problem of the high concentration of power in the
private business sector. I am not talking about the traditional monopolies,
but rather the pyramid of controlling ownership structures and holdings of
companies and financial institutions that is stifling competition.”

Netanyahu also promised to lead a reform within the education system with
the aim of providing the tools, in particular to the weak populations such
as haredim and Arabs, for joining the labor market.

“I have presented this plan to the OECD to show that Israel is working on a
very clear path to become one of the most competitive and advanced
economies,” Netanyahu said.

Israel, Estonia and Slovenia were invited to open accession talks in 2007,
along with Chile and the Russian Federation. Chile became an OECD member
earlier this year, and membership talks with Russia are progressing. In
parallel, the OECD is strengthening its growing partnership with major
emerging economies, including Brazil, China, India, Indonesia and South
Africa.