Jagdish N Singh

Can you read the world history andstill remain ignorant of Israel as one ofits most ancient entities ? Logically andmorally, it would be absolutelyinconceivable. But in our age of pseudodemocratic politics it suits most of ourpoliticians not to speak the truth aboutIsrael, and there is no dearth ofscholars and analysts who care a fig forreason and morality and are everwilling to provide ‘logical’ justificationsfor their master’s voice.

To such intellectuals, includingjournalists, the history of Israel is, atthe best, as recent as beginning withthe disintegration of the Ottomanempire and the collapse of the latteraccords justification for the birth ofArab nations but not a Jewish one . Inorder to enable their masters whip thepassions of the innocent, silent andoften passive and gullible masses forpolitical power, they have invented allkinds of myths demonizing Israel andwhoever has sided with the truth onthe matter. In the process some ofthem have chosen to dub the birth ofthe Jewish nation in 1948 as aChristian conspiracy to subdue theMuslim world while others haveattributed its growing internationalinfluence to Jewish lobbies the worldover.

Ironically, one finds, there havebeen some politicians and scholarseven in contemporary America, anation otherwise known for itsunparalleled contribution to themaking of our modern world based onits values for democracy and freedom.Deprived of strategic vision andobsessed with the fashion ofsecularism, they would say what someMuslim leaders would love to listen.They would be highly critical of stronglinkage of relations betweenWashington and Jerusalem and brandit as a creation of the Jewish lobby in

the United States. They would haveone believe that Israel has been behindmajor American foreign policydecisions, including the one to go towar against Saddam Hussein. Theirthesis adds Europe and America differa lot in their interpretations of MiddleEast but such is the influence of theJewish lobby in America thatWashington would finally go by its

view on the matter. And so on and soforth.

Professor of Political Studies at Bar-Ilan University Eytan Gilboa andDirector of Begin-Sadat Center forStrategic Studies Efraim Inbar deserveapplause for having come forward withthis volume peeling away all suchprevalent myths about American -Israeli relations and placing the barerealities before us . In addition toGilboa and Inbar, eminent expertsMitchell Bard, P Edward Haley, PaulCharles Merkley, Bejamin Miller,Amikam Nachmani, EmanueleOttolenghi, Jonathan Rynhold,Cherian Samuel, Ira M Sheskin,Shlomo Slonim and Dov Waxmanhave contributed herein their analysesof diferent dimensions of US-Israelirelations in the present era : American

approaches to international politics ;Israeli and American attitudes towardseach other; their convergence anddivergence on bilateral, regional andinternational issues; American socialgroups and lobbies; transatlanticrelations; special relationship ( minusdefence alliance ) between Americaand Israel ; Israel’s policy dilemmas ;and so on .

The work leads one to anineluctable inference that the kind ofsupport Israel derives from Americain the contemporary world cannot be acreation of any Jewish lobby. It tells usJews cannot matter so much in theAmerican foreign policy formulationfor many reasons. First, theyconstitute just about two per cent ofthe total American population ( p. 90) .Second, they are ideologically pluralist;for every two Jews there would be, asthe saying goes, "three opinions." (p.88). Third, major players and membersof the famous American Israel PublicAffairs Committee are liberaldemocrats not known so much for anIsraeli bias .(p.88) . And last, there haslong been the World Council ofChurches (WCC) "in the vanguard ofthe campaign" against Israel. ( p.108).Still if there is what is long known as along, special bonhomie between Israeland America , it is based on theconvergence of substantial perceptionsbetween the two nations-- more at thebroad societal, public andcongressional level than at thegovernmental one .

The book reveals that whileAmericans in general have supportedIsrael throughout, Christian Zionistsand Evangelicals such as John Hagee ofthe 18000 strong Cornerstone Churchin San Antanio, Texas matter a lot to apro-Israeli phenomenon in thecountry’s policy environment. (p.112)The Zionists’ pro-Israeli dispositionhas been embedded in their Puritanbelief that the state of Israel came into

March 2011 Power Politics 71

BOOK BAZAAR

A Bonhomie Of Substance

US-ISRAELI RELATIONS IN A NEW ERAEytan Gilboa &Efraim Inbar(ed),Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group,

London and New York, 2009, pp.254.

72 Power Politics March 2011

BOOK BAZAAR

being in fulfillment of the biblicalprophecy and hence its well being is inthe realm of the American moral andreligious righteousness.(p.121). Theoverall American publicand congressional supportfor Israel is guided by theshared values andinterests between the twonations and their commonstakes in future. As for thegovernmental bonding,the book suggests, it hasmore to do with what iscalled give- and- takepattern behaviourbetween any two nations.Without signing anydefence treaty between themWashington and Jerusalem contributeto bolstering each other’s nationalinterest.(p 46). While Israel getsAmerican military hardware,economic aid and diplomatic support,America has had in Israel the mostreliable ally increasingly crucial toAmerican existence itself, especially inthe wake of 9/11 terrorist attacks .

Pertinently, the Americangovernment, the book reveals, has hadlittle moral or emotionalcomponent in itsconduct of diplomacytowards Israel. Thiscould be seen in thereluctance of thesuccessive presidenciesin implementingC o n g r e s s i o n a lresolutions to move theAmerican embassy toJerusalem .(p 167)

Besides, the currententerprise acquaints onewith the challengesAmerica and Israel haveahead in the wake of the elimination ofa united Iraq and its replacement by aweak Shiite dominated state; thegrowing influence of Iran in theMuslim world; the controversialIranian nuclear programme; the rise ofIslamist movements and their terroroffshoots; American setbacks inAfghanistan; the developments inGaza and Lebanon; and in ensuring

peace and prosperity in the world ingeneral and the Middle East inparticular.

The kind of background the book

provides is sure to be of immense helpto decision-makers and policy analystsin Washington and Jerusalem inlearning right lessons from the pastand devising such appropriate policiesand strategies as would enable them toaddress their new concerns andaccomplish their foreign policyobjectives in the changed internationalcontext . As most of the challengesstated above facing America and Israelare common to the entire civilized

world today, it should enlighten theforeign policy community in othernations as well as to how to worktogether with the two nations betterfor the sake of peace and developmentin the world .

Decision-makers and scholars inIndia could specifically benefit fromthe awareness of this background . Thebook details that after the quartet of

then Prime Minister P V NarsimhaRao, Defence Minister Sharad Pawar,Foreign Secretary J N Dixit andDefence Secretary K A Nambiar came

to formulate a newstrategic turnaroundin India’s ties withIsrael, cooperationbetween New Delhiand Jerusalem hasincreased a lot indiverse areas.( p.197).Aware of theadvantages Israelholds for India today, awhole range of topbrass in thegovernment--- from

former Foreign Minister Jaswant Singhand Home Minister L K Advani of thesaffron brigade to then West BengalChief Minister Jyoti Basu and hiscolleague Somnath Chatterjee of thered ---have visited Israel to boost tiesbetween the two nations.( p198). Yet,one finds, the full potential ofcooperation between New Delhi andJerusalem is far from realized. So is thecase with Indo-American relations inthe post-cold war landscape. A better

awareness of thec o n t e m p o r a r yAmerican-Israelip h e n o m e n o ncould be used bythe Indiandecision-makersand analysts tod e v e l o pa p p r o p r i a t epolicies andstrategies aimedat extracting themaximum fromthe ongoing US-I n d i a - I s r a e l

triangular cooperation. A must read for academics,

researchers, journalists and policymakers interested in discerning thereality behind Israel’s relations withAmerica and its significance for theworld today and wishing to contributefor a better world . Congrats to Gilboaand Inbar once again on producingsuch a wonderful work !

Co-editors Eytan Gilboa & Efraim Inbar

It was the quartet of then Prime Minister P V Narsimha Rao,Defence Minister Sharad Pawar, Foreign Secretary J N Dixit

and Defence Secretary K A Nambiar which came to formulatea new strategic turnaround in India’s ties with Israel. Aware

of the advantages Israel holds for India today , a whole rangeof top brass in the government--- from former Foreign

Minister Jaswant Singh and Home Minister L K Advani of thesaffron brigade to then West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basuand his colleague Somnath Chatterjee of the red-- have visited

Israel to boost bilateral ties between the two nations.