Israel’s former Ambassador to the United States and the former United States Ambassador to Israel join up in this down-to-earth, let’s-face-reality type interview. These two highly regarded diplomats know better than nearly anybody else that there never really was ever much hope for the two state so-called “solution” in Israel. It was predicated on nothing more than a pipe dream to appease the haters of Israel who have consistently adopted the salami approach to destroying the State of Israel.
But what really is interesting is that both of these diplomats are rather optimistic about the chances of Israel and other Arab countries building on the success of the Abraham Accords in order to expand the economic cooperation that exists between Israel and many of it’s Arab neighbors. Yes, even some of the not-so-democratic countries would rather reap the benefits of normalization with the State of Israel than continue to fight Israel’s very existence.
This contractual, business-like method of viewing the best solutions to the world’s problems via the eyes of rivaling businessman, and not via rivaling ideologies, is both brilliant and flawed. On the one hand, by focusing most of the energies of negotiators to the financial side of conflicts, it elevates the chances of putting aside rivaling ideologies in order to focus on prosperity.
However, this only applies to those populations and countries who are somewhat torn between ancient ideologies and modernity. But those populations and leaders who are not torn, but rather still enamored with mindsets of killing and destroying infidels, no matter what the ramifications, are not going to jump to the side of economic cooperation with the infidels. Especially countries such as Syria and Iraq, wherein the moderating voices usually have short life spans, the chances of forward progress are slim.
Although it is not always said openly, the big domino is Saudi Arabia. If normalization occurs with Saudi Arabia, that will tip the balance from a minority to a majority of the Arab countries in the Middle East normalizing with Israel. Will all of the other countries follow suit like dominoes? Probably not. But it will signify a seismic shift from an Arab-dominated Middle East determined to fight against Israel to an economically focussed Arab-dominated Middle East willing to cooperate with Israel despite differences. That eventuality may be reached sooner than many people realize.