International
Biden Administration Continues to Appease Iran, its Axis at Israel’s Expense
Follow Steve Postal: @HebraicMosaic
The Biden administration continues to appease Iran and its axis at Israel’s expense. Recently, the Biden administration:
1. Continues to pursue a ceasefire with Hamas on Iran’s terms…
The Biden administration continues to pressure Israel on achieving a ceasefire with Hamas. This is concerning as the Biden administration is parroting Iran’s talking pointsemphasizing a desire to get Israel to agree to a ceasefire in exchange for Iran (or its proxies) not attacking it. For example, President Biden confirmed that he expects Iran to hold off on attacking Israel if a ceasefire is reached. Additionally, US special envoy Amos Hochstein, when visiting Beirut, remarked that a ceasefire deal could help avoid war between Israel and Lebanon. These statements eerily model those of three Iranian officials, who stated that Iranian retaliation could be delayed if a ceasefire deal is achieved, with one of those officials even stating that Iran would attack Israel if a ceasefire was not reached or if Iran perceived that Israel was stalling in negotiations. The statements by both the Biden administration and Iran show that pressure is being put on Israel, not Hamas, to ceasefire, and emphasizes a quid pro quo for Israel to agree to a ceasefire in exchange for Iran to not attack Israel.
Meanwhile, while sources stress that they are working to get Hamas to the table, this appears to be kabuki theater as there is no indication that Hamas has any desire to meet for these negotiations. According to State Department spokesman Vedant Patel, Qatar is trying to “work to see Hamas represented” in upcoming ceasefire talks, while Secretary of State Antony is pressuring Turkey to pressure Hamas to come to come to the table for negotiations. But the US has nothing to show for these efforts. One Arab official stated that while Hamas won’t be at the actual talks, it will meet mediators afterwards, signaling that Hamas does not intend to negotiate in good faith.
3. Fails to clinch a Saudi-Israel normalization agreement
Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu has decided to not pursue a Saudi-Israel normalization agreement at least until the US elections in November. But this change of heart is likely because the Biden administration was insistent that a Palestinian state be part of the deal, forcing Netanyahu to distance himself from the deal, and subsequently causing Saudi Arabia to distance itself from Netanyahu. By trying to get Israel to swallow a poison pill of a Palestinian state, the Biden administration has all but given up its chance of clinching what would have been a tectonic deal that would have significantly strengthened the US and its allies’ efforts to contain Iran in the region. To its credit, the Biden administration has finally lifted its ban on offensive weapons sales to Saudi Arabia. However, this win merely highlights how absurd it was for the Biden administration to attempt to distinguish between “offensive” and “defensive” weapons to an ally in the first place (and to do so for three years).
Lastly, the Biden administration has made a point convey that it“strongly opposes” an Israeli minister’s visit to the Temple Mount, that the administration feels that this minister“demonstrated blatant disregard for the historic status quo with respect to the holy sites in Jerusalem,” and that the administration calls the Temple Mount the “Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount.” This is despite that both classical and modern Islamic sources have recognized the Temple Mount asthe location where Solomon’s Temple stood, and that the Jewish connection to the Temple Mount pre-dates the founding of any Muslim connection by at least 1,600 years.
The Biden administration continues to fumble on Middle East policy, putting an Israeli victory over Hamas in jeopardy, undermining prospects for a strong Saudi-Israeli strategic partnership, and picking a fight with the Jewish state over its holiest site. Given its current trajectory, it appears that the Biden administration is poised to further appease Iran, Hamas and other Islamists in the region at the expense of US and Israeli interests.
Follow Steve Postal: @HebraicMosaic
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What would a new Trump administration mean for the Middle East? Expect the following:
Increased Pressure on Iran and its Proxies
Brian Hook, Trump’s former special envoy to Iran who is believed to be leading Trump’s transition team for the State Department, stated that the new Trump administration would seek to “…isolate Iran diplomatically and weaken them economically, so that they can’t fund all of the violence…” coming from Iran’s proxies, “…all of whom destabilize Israel and our Gulf partners.” This approach contrasts with the Biden-Harris administration, who engaged the Islamic Republic diplomatically and economically, and even removed the Houthis from the Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) entity list from February 2021 through January 2024. That being said, Hook also stated that the new Trump administration would have “no interest in regime change” in Iran, and that decisions about the future of Iran lies with its people.
The Trump administration may green light an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear sites. GOP spokeswoman Elizabeth Pipko refused to say whether President-elect Trump would approve of Israel attacking Iran’s nuclear sites, stating that Trump should speak for himself on this issue and will do so when he assumes office. However, Trump had stated in October that Israel should strike Iran’s nuclear sites. In contrast, the Biden-Harris administration vocally opposed Israel attacking Iran’s nuclear sites or oil fields, and Israel’s attack plans were leaked to Iran through someone in the Biden-Harris administration’s Defense department.
Striving to End Wars in Lebanon and Gaza
According to Pipko, President-elect Trump wants Israel to end the wars in Gaza and Lebanon quickly, decisively, and with victory. Pipko contrasted this approach with the Biden-Harris administration’s “back and forth” policy, and that the Biden-Harris administration was pressuring how Israel conducts war based on election considerations. The Biden-Harris administration was guilty of “armchair quarterbacking” Israel’s wars in an unproductive way, including by leaking Israel’s plans to strike Lebanon, opposing the Rafah invasion, and opposing the killing of several arch-terrorists.
Trump will also likely prioritize the release of the hostages; Trump recently threatened Hamas, stating that if they did not free its hostages before inauguration day, it will pay “a very big price.” In contrast, the Biden-Harris administration has been spinning its wheels in endless failed diplomacy with Qatar, having not produced a hostage deal with Hamas since November 2023.
Pursuing a Conditional Peace with Palestinians
President-elect Donald Trump will likely re-visit his 2020 peace plan between Israel and the Palestinians, according to Brian Hook. Regarding the 2020 plan, Hook stated that “much of that work is still relevant today.”
On the issue of a Palestinian state, expect that the Trump administration won’t pursue a Palestinian state unconditionally for its own sake, as the Biden-Harris administration has. Hook conceded that Trump’s 2020 plan, which was endorsed by Israel and U.S.’ allies in the Gulf, “had a path to a two-state solution.” But Hook also recognized that Israelis are not focused on a Palestinian state now, and are instead focused on protecting themselves from terrorism in the wake of the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Additionally, Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas outright rejected the 2020 plan, and the plan also required the PA to provide security guarantees for Israel, recognize Israel, and allow Israeli citizens to remain in Judea and Samaria, all of which the PA did not agree to. If the new Trump administration seeks to revive this plan, it will likely revive these conditions for a Palestinian state as well. The PA will then in turn likely reject it a second time, proving again that the PA is not a partner for peace.
Expanding the Abraham Accords
President-elect Trump is also poised to expand the Abraham Accords. Trump brokered normalization deals between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. Reportedly, the previous Trump administration was on the verge of expanding the Abraham Accords to Indonesia and Mauritania, but were prevented from doing so once the administration’s term expired. During the past Trump administration, Saudi Arabia had been trying to get Pakistan to join the Abraham Accords as well.
In contrast, the Biden-Harris administration failed to add any countries to the Abraham Accords. Most notably is the administration’s failure to clinch an Israel-Saudi Arabia deal after chilling US relations with Saudi Arabiaand insisting on a Palestinian state as an integral part of any deal. The Biden-Harris administration seems content with now pursuing a bilateral US-Saudi deal that ices out Israel, which would completely undermine the spirit of the Abraham Accords.
Jared Kushner has had multiple discussions with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the issue of US-Israel-Saudi relations since President-elect Trump left office. So given past efforts, the new Trump administration could clinch Abraham Accords deals with Indonesia, Mauritania, Oman, and/or the big prize, Saudi Arabia.
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