Weekly Commentary: Can Cuba Substitute For Palestine? The Obama Challenge
Dr. Aaron Lerner Date: 25 March 2015
Here’s the optimistic scenario: If Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu holds
firm, President Obama will ultimately reach the conclusion that all the left
wing Israelis and American Jews are wrong in their assessment that Netanyahu
will capitulate to pressure. With an eye on his place in the history books,
Mr. Obama will then focus on orchestrating a series of photo ops featuring
him as the man who restored relations with Cuba. Don’t be surprised to see
photo spreads of a presidential family vacation at a Cuban beach resort.
No doubt there will also be a cute photo of his wife glaring at him as he
lights up a Cuban cigar.
More likely scenario: President Obama keeps turning the screws to the very
end of his term. Prime Minister Netanyahu doesn’t buckle to American
pressure and make the best of the situation with his coalition of 67 MKs.
Worst case scenario: Buckling to pressure, Israel finds itself locked into
a framework, followed by a timeline that includes step-wise Israeli
withdrawals subject to Palestinian compliance.
A reminder: in the early years of Oslo, Congress made U.S. funding for the
PA contingent on full Palestinian compliance. Miracle of miracles. Every
official U.S. assessment concluded that the Palestinians were in complete
compliance.
Expect the same automatic pass if we start moving down a timeline to the
creation of a sovereign Palestinian state.
Binyamin Netanyahu can most certainly stand up to this and the other
challenges.
There’s a clarity to the situation in terms of the Palestinians and Iran
that makes it considerably easier for Prime Minister Netanyahu to lead with
determination.
Add to that: Netanyahu finds himself in the unprecedented situation of
being point man for the ARAB WORLD and concerned Europeans in the struggle
against American capitulation to Iran!
Yes. It won’t be a picnic. But now, more than ever, there’s a feeling of a
nation ready and able to respond to the call “acharei” (after me).
|
