Lundi 9 novembre 2009 1 09 /11 /2009 19:36

Ca tangue entre Israël et les Etats Unis : pas de discours de BHO devant l'UJC, un entretien avec Bibi sans la presse

Ca tangue et les diverses présentations sont cocasses, dans leurs variations et leur volonté de toujours dénier le problème quand problème il y a. Ainsi on a eu droit à la fameuse "majorité morale" de l' Assemblée Générale des Nations Unies, mais enfin, 18 votes contre le rapport, si ce sont 18 votes de trop, ce n'est tout de même pas à franchement parler significatif.

Les articles du jour portent sur la rencontre Netanyahu Obama, puisque ce dernier qui devait prendre la parole devant l'AG de l'UJC a changé son emploi du temps, et tant pis pour les flyers et la campagne de promo organisés.

Il devait rencontrer Netanyahou ce soir. C'était annoncé dès hier par le Jerusalem Post.

Probablement, il y eut encore des tractations manifestant que Bibi (quel scandale !) n'était pas prioritaire. Ainsi Ha'aretz a-t-il publié ce papier ce matin. L'humiliation était identifiée, énoncée, mais Obama, ma foi, n'était que le Président, les Etats Unis un grand pays, et Israël y était aimé. On en a vu la démonstration lors du passage d'Olmert à Chicago et à San Francisco, aux cris de "War Criminal" entre autres, ce que le journal semble avoir déjà oublié, ou du moins les différentes voix dont il se fait le porte parole.
Bibi était un diplomate aguerri, BHO un débutant. Cela étant, en conclusion, il était reconnnu qu'il serait bon d'entendre ce qui est reproché :

Does Obama delay in scheduling Netanyahu meet point to crisis?

By Aluf Benn

Relations between Israel and the United States are in crisis. This is the conclusion that stems from the difficulty in arranging a meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama.

The White House wanted Netanyahu to sweat before being granted an audience with the president, and wanted everyone to see him perspire.

The delays in finding a time to meet, and pushing it to a late hour - after the news programs on Israeli television - make Netanyahu look as if Obama threw him a bone. In such circumstances, it is no longer important what will be said at the meeting, and the extent to which there will be an attempt to present it as an achievement. The prime minister of Israel was humiliated before all.

Netanyahu likes to say that the United States is big and that the Israeli public is mistaken in identifying the American viewpoint only with the president. The true America, Netanyahu says, begins 70 miles west of New York and ends 70 miles east of Los Angeles, and within this enormous space, Israel has millions of loyal supporters.

In his view, the friction with the White House needs to be put in the appropriate proportion, and that falls within the tremendous support of American public opinion that favors Israel.

Those close to Netanyahu, who can express themselves more freely than him, ridicule Obama's inexperience and political amateurism of the administration. In their view, the White House thought it would be possible to bring Netanyahu down, but he only strengthened, according to public opinion polls.

They pressured him to freeze settlements, but he did not surrender.

These neat explanations seem to miss the point: The relations are not symmetrical. Netanyahu may be an experienced diplomat and politician, and Obama may be a novice, but Obama is the president of a superpower, and Netanyahu represents a small country that depends greatly on the United States.

It sometimes appears that Netanyahu forgets this, and pretends he is the head of a superpower, for example when he identifies himself with Winston Churchill, or in declaring that the Israeli mind will free the world of oil dependency in a decade.

Of course Israel can and should use influence and support in the United States, in order to push the policies of the administration in its favor. But in moments of truth and during a crisis, it would be good for Netanyahu if Obama was quick to respond to his call, and not place him on hold.

Obama is not always fair: Denying the existence of understandings between Israel and the previous administration on the settlements harmed his credibility. It is also unclear why he humiliated Netanyahu after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton publicly praised the Prime Minister's proposal to limit settlement construction as "unprecedented."

The opaqueness of the administration rallied Israeli public opinion behind Netanyahu, instead of creating domestic divisions.

But even when the president is not being nice, he is still stronger in the relationship. Instead of making excuses and explaining the terrible situation, Netanyahu should make the effort to resolve the crisis with the American administration. He should listen to the American complaints which sound like the gripes of a couple married for 30 years. Israel complains about the absence of intimacy but only takes and does not give anything in return.

Haaretz

Ce soir un autre papier, autre son de cloche, depuis la position d'Ehud Barak, selon lequel :

Last update - 20:30 09/11/2009

Barak: Obama government presents rare opportunity for peace

By Haaretz Service

"...Barak stressed that the U.S. administration is currently the biggest world power, and that it represented a rare chance for peace, which far surpasses all other alternatives... "Strategic understanding and cooperation on intelligence with the U.S. are the foundation stones of Israeli security," he said...

La conclusion concerne cependant le fameux entretien avec BHO :

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also arrived in Washington on Monday in order to take part in the GA conference. Netanyahu is scheduled to meet with Obama while in Washington.

The U.S. only relayed a message about the meeting Sunday morning, after Netanyahu and his aids already assumed that there will be no meeting with Obama.

The meeting is expected to be short and closed off to the press"

Ha'aretz

Bref, ça tangue sévère, et le propos est de toujours donner le change et faire mine de gérer. Jusqu'à quand ?

Il est à noter que jusqu'à l'Assemblée Générale de l'Union des Communautés Juives, Netanyahu est confronté par des pacifistes qui emploient les même termes que ceux entendus par Olmert à Chicago et San Francisco :