US Fails to Use Leverage With Israel
Daoud Kuttab laments that the US no longer seems able to influence Israeli politics, despite the aid and assistance it provides.
During the past few decades, one can easily and accurately trace times in which world powers (especially the US) were able to influence a political process.
At least two Israeli elections come to mind: the victory of Labor’s Yitshaq Rabin replacing Yitshaq Shamir in the early 1990s and not long after that, the victory of Ehud Barak and the defeat of Benjamin Netanyahu. In both cases, the US was looking for a leader that could usher in a peace process and in both cases, they seem to have gotten what they want. This time around, the US seems to be interested in getting rid of Netanyahu but is unlikely to succeed.
