‘Biden’s been ignored’: Is the US’ influence over Israel waning?
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Israel and the US are long-time allies. But as Israel continues to act against the US' orders, is America's influence over the country withering away?
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Read time: 5 minutes
In brief…
- Fears of an all-out regional war in the Middle East are building, despite the US publicly warning Israel against escalation.
- As Israel has appeared to ignore the US command, it has raised questions as to whether America’s influence over the country is waning.
- The News Agents hears what BBC Newsnight’s former diplomatic editor Mark Urban makes of it all.
What’s the story?
Israel and the US’ close relationship practically goes back to 1948 - when Israel was first created.
So perhaps it is no surprise that Joe Biden stands firm in his belief that Israel has a right to defend itself.
But as its war against Hezbollah in Lebanon escalates - a scenario Biden has publicly pleaded with Israel to not let happen - it has thrown into question whether America is being listened to.
On Monday, Israel launched a ground invasion of Lebanon just days after Biden was urging a ceasefire and a diplomatic resolution to the conflict.
It came after Israeli bombs killed Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the designated terrorist group Hezbollah, harming many civilians along the way.
Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Natenyahu, reportedly gave the order while in New York shortly after delivering a forceful speech at the UN.
Lewis says: “The thing that is really striking is the impotence of the White House and Joe Biden and the complete lack of influence that he had…on the Israeli government.
“Who has been the government which has been preeminent in the West in calling for restraint and for Israel not to do this? It's been the US government. Biden. He's been ignored.”
Now, things have escalated further. On Tuesday night the world watched live as over 180 ballistic missiles were fired from Iran into Israel. Hours after the attack Netenyahu said Iran had made a “big mistake” and will “pay for it”.
The US has warned Israel not to cross certain red lines as retaliation looms.
The question is, will it listen?
How much influence, if any, is Biden having on Israeli decision making?
Why else are there question marks over America’s influence in Israel?
Mark Urban, BBC Newsnight’s former diplomatic editor, tells The News Agents that it is perhaps a slight misconception to believe that until recently Israel has always listened to America’s every command.
He says: “It's been received wisdom among many people covering the story for decades, that America can sort of click its fingers…to start or stop something”.
But he doesn’t necessarily agree with this notion.
“I’ve never assumed that”, he says.
That doesn’t mean that the White House is being entirely ignored, Urban says, adding that they “clearly do have a say.”
Some reporting suggests senior White House figures informed Israel that the US would in fact support its decision to increase military pressure against Hezbollah.
“While publicly the Americans were cautioning against escalation, other voices were saying Hezbollah has a lot of American blood on its hands, so go ahead and do it,” Urban says.
While Lebanon is currently dominating headlines, Israel’s war in Gaza is still raging on too.
When Israel was attacked on October 7 last year, President Biden made clear his support for the country, saying; “As long as the United States stands — and we will stand forever — we will not let you ever be alone.”
But, in that same speech, Biden, referencing America’s own moment of terror, also gave a warning.
“I caution this: While you feel that rage, don’t be consumed by it. “After 9/11, we were enraged in the United States. And while we sought justice and got justice, we also made mistakes.”
And as the war in Gaza has progressed, Biden’s unrelenting support for Israel’s every move dwindled.
The president has called for ceasefires in Gaza, to which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanhyahu has not responded well.
The US has also asked it to minimise civilian casualties where possible, warning it would curtail arms shipments if it did not.
However, when mosques, hospitals and schools were hit with airstrikes, critics said Israel was doing anything but this.
Will the US election have an impact on what happens next?
Urban ponders questions as to whether Israel is capable of taking the fight to Iran - which international observers say could be close to developing a nuclear weapon - on its own.
“Can Israel, on its own, do this with a high degree of confidence..destroy significant parts of the Iranian nuclear infrastructure? Because a lot of it is deep underground, I'm not sure they can," he says.
He adds that if it is detected that Iran possesses a nuclear bomb, the operation to eliminate this threat would be a joint US-Israeli operation.
“The fact that Biden is very much on his way out, his faculties are weakened”, Urban says.
But the one thing he did do was pause bomb deliveries during the Gaza fighting “because of the fear that the Israelis were using really disproportionate attacks on the Palestinians”, Urban points out.
He adds: “If you pause those when you're fighting Hezbollah in Iran, people will say, ‘but you're just going to make sure Israel loses’, which in American terms is politically unacceptable.”
So is something the current administration has to consider, given there is an election coming up?
Jon questions whether, as Biden is no longer running, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanhyahu has to take notice of his demands at all.
He asks: “I do think it speaks to there being a kind of gulf, a chasm, a vacuum at the moment in American leadership. Joe Biden's the president, but he's not running again. How much notice does Netanyahu take?
“How much notice does Iran take of the saber rattling that might come from America given the uncertainty of the period that we're in?”
Listen in full on the News Agents.
