America's double standards

After having admitted [that] espionage among friends is legitimate, it would
only be right for the U.S. to release Jonathan Pollard

By Smadar Bat Adam – Israel Hayom – October 29, 2013

http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=6139

J4JP Disclaimer: J4JP’s distribution of this article should not be construed
as an endorsement in whole or in part of the opinions expressed. J4JP
presents this article in support of its conclusion only – another differing
viewpoint which concludes that Jonathan Pollard must be released.

When reports surfaced suggesting that the U.S. was eavesdropping on dozens
of Western leaders, among them the leaders of its closest allies, sending
shockwaves through the West, and a U.S. State Department spokeswoman
responded by saying they would look into the reports from the perspective of
"our friends and partners around the world," I was reminded of another
convoluted remark made by an American figure: "I did not have sexual
relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky." That is what then-President Bill
Clinton said back in 1998. I was reminded of that instance because of the
Americans' unique way of presenting things they have done that are forbidden
or immoral.

Now the U.S.'s friends are angry. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has
reprimanded U.S. President Barack Obama and told him that the trust between
their two countries has been
severely compromised. Obama claims he was not aware of the National Security
Agency's eavesdropping, even though he directly oversees that office. When
it emerges that he was actually notified as early as 2010, he will have to
call Merkel again and say, "Whoops, sorry, I wasn't aware that I was aware."

French President Francois Hollande is also unhappy. He is inviting
additional European countries to join a no-spying agreement France and
Germany seek to impose on the Americans.
In short, the U.S. messed up.

It is with all that in mind that every word uttered by U.S. State Department
Spokeswoman Jen Psaki should be analyzed. Pay close attention when she says
the U.S. "will continue to gather the information necessary to protect the
American people and their allies." The Americans are doing damage control.
Or when Obama orders a re-examination of the country's surveillance program,
and his Homeland Security Adviser Lisa Monaco promises the democratic world
that the U.S. is "collecting information because we need it and not just
because we can."

Jerusalem, you got that? America is admitting that according to its
standards, espionage among friends is legitimate, when it is needed. And it
will continue doing so. After having admitted as much, it would only be
right for the U.S. to release Jonathan Pollard, who, not because he could
but because he thought he needed to, relayed information to a very close
ally of the U.S. while he was working for Navy Intelligence. This
information served Israel in preparing, among other things, for attacks by
Arab nations with weapons of mass destruction, in operations like the
bombing of the PLO headquarters in Tunisia on Oct. 1, 1985, or in responding
to a string of terror attacks.

Pollard confessed, and was convicted of spying, even though he was spying
for a friendly country with no intention of causing harm to the U.S. On
March 4, 1987, he was sentenced to life in prison with a recommendation to
deny him parole. Until that point, the heaviest sentence handed down for
espionage in the U.S. had been 14 years.

Pollard consistently argued that his actions were motivated by a need to
protect the existence of the State of Israel, after he discovered that
certain individuals within the American national security mechanism were
putting Israeli lives at risk by deliberately withholding some of the
information to which Israel should have been privy under a 1983 memorandum.
Lawrence Korb, who was the assistant secretary of defense at the time of
Pollard's trial, confirmed during a recent visit to Israel that the
information Pollard gave Israel did in fact have to do with dangers posed to
Israel by the Arab world. He stressed that Pollard was never charged with
treason, and remarked that he felt the punishment Pollard received was
excessive.
Israel has to demand Pollard's immediate release, and to reprimand the U.S.
for its shameful conduct. Enough with the double standards. And Obama, who
views fairness as the ultimate value, must, in the name of his country,
apologize to Pollard, whose crime fell well within the bounds of "espionage
among friends" when necessary. He must be granted his freedom as soon as
possible.