Understanding the U.S. Israel relations (GS Paper 2, International Relation)
Why in news?
- Within days of the October 7 attack by Hamas inside Israel, killing at least 1,400 people, the US President travelled to Israel to declare solidarity with the Jewish state.
- He described Hamas as “unadulterated evil” and stated that America “stands with Israel”.
Details:
- Since the attack, Israel has been bombing Gaza relentlessly and is currently carrying out a ground invasion in which at least 8,700 Palestinians have already been killed.
- The U.S. has been careful not to criticise Israel even in the face of the latter’s disproportionate attack on the tiny enclave of 2.3 million people.
- The U.S. has also vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that called for a humanitarian pause to Israel’s attacks and voted against a resolution at the UN General Assembly calling for a humanitarian truce, which was passed with a landslide.
- This is not surprising given the history of the U.S.-Israel relations. Barring minor personality clashes between leaders, the U.S. has stood solidly behind Israel, irrespective of the latter’s actions, at least since 1967.
What are origins of U.S.-Israel ties?
- The U.S. had supported the idea of a Jewish homeland even before the state of Israel was declared within historical Palestine in 1948.
- On March 3, 1919, two years after the Balfour Declaration, in which the British government declared its support for the creation of a “Jewish homeland in Palestine”, President Woodrow Wilson said, “The allied nations with the fullest concurrence of our government and people are agreed that in Palestine shall be laid the foundations of a Jewish Commonwealth.”
- In 1922 and 1944, the U.S. Congress passed resolutions endorsing the Balfour Declaration.
- The U.S. was the first country that recognised Israel in 1948. The recognition came in 11 minutes after the proclamation.
Ties in initial two decades:
- Though the U.S. offered the state of Israel support right from the latter’s birth, the initial two decades of their relationship had not been very smooth.
- The Eisenhower administration was unhappy when Israel, along with France and Britain, launched the Suez war. US threatened to cut aid to Israel if it did not withdraw from the territories it had captured.
- The Soviet Union also threatened to fire missiles unless Israel withdrew, and finally Israel had to pull back from the areas it seized.
- Similarly, in the 1960s, the Kenney administration had voiced concerns about Israel’s secret nuclear programme.
Post 1967 war:
- However the 1967 war, in which Israel defeated Jordan, Syria and Egypt, all in six days, and captured swathes of territories, brought in a paradigm shift in the way US looked at Israel.
- The U.S. at that time was bogged down in Vietnam. Israel defeated the Arab countries without any major help from the U.S., and the war was wrapped up quickly.
- Also, two of the Arab countries Israel defeated; Egypt and Syria were Soviet allies. From then on, the U.S. started seeing Israel as a stable ally who can check the expansion of Soviet influence in West Asia.
What is the current status of the U.S.-Israel ties?
- Today, Israel is an exceptional ally of the US. The U.S. offers practically unconditional financial, military and political support for Israel, which has been occupying Palestinian territories since 1967.
- Israel is an undeclared nuclear power but has never faced any global scrutiny or pushback, due to the protection offered by the U.S.
- Israel is also the largest recipient of America’s aid, it has received $158 billion in aid from the U.S. since the end of the Second World War. Currently, Israel gets $3.8 billion in military aid every year from the U.S., which accounts for about 16% of Israel’s total military budget.
- The U.S. is also Israel’s largest trading partner, with annual two-way trade hovering around $50 billion.
- Both Israel and the U.S. also have a deep defence partnership, which involves joint research and development and weapons production. For example, the Iron Dome, Israel’s famed missile defence shield, uses parts built in the U.S. and the system is financed in part by the U.S. With U.S. help,
- Israel has built a highly advanced defence manufacturing base, which has made the country the world’s 10th largest military exporter. Since 1972, the U.S. has used its veto power over 50 times to strike down resolutions critical of Israel in the UN Security Council.
Military Support:
- From the 1973 Yom Kippur war onwards, the U.S. has also offered solid military support to Israel in its conflicts.
- In 1973, after Israel was taken aback by the surprise attack by Egypt and Syria, U.S. supplies proved vital for Israel to push back the enemy troops from the occupied Golan Heights and Sinai Peninsula.
- In 1982, the U.S. sent Multinational Forces to Lebanon after Israel’s invasion of the country. After the first intifada, the U.S. supported the Oslo process and the two-state solution, but without compromising its relationship with Israel.
Relationship during Trump administration:
- Now, the running theme in the US is that it supports “Israel’s right to defend”. The previous U.S. administration, of Donald Trump, recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and moved the US embassy to the disputed city.
- The Trump administration also recognised Israel’s annexation of Golan Heights, a Syrian territory it captured in 1967 and held under its occupation ever since.
Were there ever tensions between Israel and the U.S.?
- While there were personality clashes between American Presidents and Israeli Prime Ministers, such clashes never led to a breakdown in what President John F. Kennedy called “the special relationship”.
- In the 1970s, President Jimmy Carter heaped pressure on Israel to make peace with Egypt and give concessions to the Palestinians. Israel would finally agree to sign the Framework for Peace Agreement as part of the Camp David Accords, which would set the stage for the Oslo process.
- During the second intifada, President George W. Bush pressed Israel to show restraint in the occupied West Bank, and in return Prime Minister Ariel Sharon accused him of appeasing the Arabs.
- In 2002, Mr. Bush asked Israel to pull back from the West Bank and end a military operation “without delay”, but the Israelis never obliged.
- President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had also clashed over the Iran nuclear deal. But the same Mr. Obama vetoed all resolutions at the UN Security Council critical of Israel except one during his eight-year term. He also cleared a $38 billion aid package for Israel.
- The Biden administration had earlier criticised the Netanyahu government’s plan to overhaul the country’s judiciary. But after the October 7 attack by Hamas, the U.S. has thrown its full weight behind the Netanyahu government’s war on Gaza.
Why does the U.S. always back Israel?
- Israel’s strategic value in a volatile yet critical region makes it appealing for the US. During the Cold War, the U.S. saw Israel as a powerful bulwark against possible Soviet expansion in the Arab world.
- After the Cold War, when the U.S. started becoming more and more involved in West Asia, it continued to see Israel as a force of stability, along with Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
- Strategic value explains a close partnership or alliance, like America’s relationships with Japan, South Korea or Germany.
- A host of other factors, including America’s public opinion, electoral politics and the powerful Israel lobby in the U.S., play a role in shaping the country’s Israel policy.
