Analyse
Israel attacks Iran:Israel’s retaliation: US diplomacy failed?
by David Sauer and Claudia Bates, Washington DC
While Israel takes military action against Iran, the US response remains muted. Foreign Minister Blinken warns of further escalation in the conflict. An analysis.
The presidential elections will take place in the USA in November.
What: AP
The reports of Israel’s retaliatory strike against Iran were broadcast just before a US Air Force plane carrying Secretary of State Antony Blinken landed at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington DC. The US Secretary of State had just returned from a week-long diplomatic mission to the Middle East, which included stops in Israel, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. The aim of this trip was to boil down the situation in the Middle East, a source of conflict, and to call on everyone involved to calm down.
How is the US government reacting?
In the evening, there was initially only a tight-lipped confirmation from the White House that Israel was now taking military action against Iran, but there was no further information. Reference is made to the Israeli government.
“We believe that Israel is conducting targeted attacks against military targets in Iran as a means of self-defense and in response to the Iranian missile attack on Israel,” said Sean Savett, a spokesman for the National Security Council.
An anonymous US official is quoted as saying that Israel warned Biden administration officials about the attacks, but would not comment on how much advance warning was given. In recent days, White House and Pentagon officials had consulted closely with Israel about the scope and nature of targets Israel would use against Iran.
This red line was not crossed
There is currently no official assessment from US President Joe Biden. American media, however, quote government circles saying that they are of the opinion that the Israeli attacks are not suitable for further major escalation.
On the one hand, this is good news. At the same time, Israel’s actions show once again that the diplomatic efforts of the past weeks and months are not effective. At least not in a way that seriously influences Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu.
However, a red line was apparently not crossed: President Biden had expressly advised Israel against attacking Iran’s oil fields and nuclear facilities.
US President Biden has advised Israel against attacking Iranian oil facilities. Oct 5, 2024 | 0:29 min
USA has no interest in war with Iran
The US government has not the slightest interest in a war with Iran, wants to avoid such a scenario at all costs and assumes that Iran cannot have any interest in it either.
An escalation in the Middle East just eleven days before the US presidential election would be further evidence for the Republicans that the Biden administration is acting too toothlessly in foreign and security policy.
Netanyahu relies on Trump
Israel’s latest step also shows that the American president’s influence on Prime Minister Netanyahu is limited. However, Donald Trump’s close friend Netanyahu has no interest in the Democrats being re-elected in the presidential election. He is relying on Donald Trump, who has also expressly recommended an attack on oil fields and nuclear facilities.
During a recent campaign appearance, Trump said he spoke to Netanyahu and he told him he wouldn’t listen to Biden.
Benjamin Netanyahu and Republican US presidential candidate Trump met in Florida. They were united, including in their dislike of Kamala Harris.07/27/2024 | 0:22 min
Goal of US diplomacy: ceasefire in Gaza
The main goal of US diplomacy, including during Blinken’s trip to the Middle East, was and is a sustainable ceasefire in Gaza. In return, the Israeli hostages still held by Hamas should be released.
The US government sees this as a key to a general de-escalation in the region.
Claudia Bates and David Sauer are correspondents in the ZDF studio in Washington DC
Liveblog
:Latest news on the escalation in the Middle East
Since the Hamas attack on Israel, the region has been like a powder keg. On Saturday night, the Israeli military carried out a retaliatory attack on Iran. Everything in the blog.
