Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin wants his Israeli counterpart to address what the Pentagon called “extremist settler violence” against Palestinians and continue efforts to improve economic opportunities for Palestinians living in the West Bank.
With Israel in the midst of a major clash over constitutional questions, Mr. Austin on Tuesday told Defense Minister Yoav Gallant that pursuing “broad consensus through political dialogue” was critical for a resilient democracy.
“He also expressed concern regarding the urgent need for Israeli and Palestinian leaders to take meaningful steps to ensure stability in the West Bank,” the Pentagon said in a statement after the two defense chiefs spoke on the telephone.
Their conversation came as the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu grappled with growing protests over a controversial legislative measure to overhaul Israel’s powerful judiciary.
Thousands of reserve soldiers in the Israeli Defense Forces have threatened to refuse to serve because of the bill.
Minister Gallant was sacked earlier this year over his opposition to the reform bill but was later reinstated by Mr. Netanyahu.
In addition to the Palestinian question, the two men discussed the range of what they called Iran-backed threats to stability and security in the region and agreed to continue working together on the matter, the Pentagon said.
With the Biden administration’s efforts to revive the nuclear containment deal with Iran repudiated by President Trump in 2018 seemingly blocked, a new analysis from the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA) argues that Israel may be required to resort to military action to resolve the threat from Tehran, sooner rather than later.
“We’ve learned from the Ukraine issue that it’s important to prepare for these things and not wait,” JINSA President Michael Makovsky said Monday. “Everything is much tougher once hostilities begin.”
The conservative think tank’s “No Daylight: US Strategy If Israel Attacks Iran” urges the United States to close ranks with Israel in the event a military clash breaks out.
Elliot Abrams, a member of JINSA’s Iran Policy Project, said Tehran has not been deterred from its ambition to become a nuclear power. They believe that while the U.S. may have the ability to cripple their program, it lacks the will to take that crucial step.
“And they seem to think that the Israelis don’t have the capacity. That’s very dangerous,” said Mr. Abrams, a former U.S. special representative for Iran during the Trump administration. “That’s precisely the kind of situation that can lead to a war.”
While President Biden has vowed that Iran won’t get a nuclear weapon “on his watch,” his administration really doesn’t have an Iran policy other than going back to the Iran nuclear deal, Mr. Abrams said.
“But it’s pretty clear that a return to the [Iran nuclear deal] isn’t going to happen. So what’s the policy? How do you stop Iran from moving toward a nuclear weapon,” he said. “I don’t think the (Biden) administration has ever answered that question.”
Retired Air Force General Chuck Wald said Iran’s leaders will only respond to strength. They should be warned that the U.S. has the military means to destroy their nuclear ambitions, he said.
“There has to be action to stop their development of a nuclear weapon,” said Gen. Wald, a former air commander for U.S. Central Command. “If Israel goes in, we’re going to be right there with them.”
In the aftermath of an Israeli strike, the interests of the U.S. and Israel will be closely aligned, JINSA said.
“Both will be best served by close cooperation to ensure a less bloody, narrower and shorter conflict,” according to the report.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
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