“As for the future after the peace agreements with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, I really believe there is still a lot to be expected. I think in time, and I don’t know if it will be a year or a month, but I think that in our lifetime, God willing, we will see an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict as we know it will. The idea of 22 members of the Arab League joining forces in opposition to Israel and refusing to recognize Israel is coming to an end. This does not mean that all 22 members of the Arab League will join immediately, it will happen gradually, but I have no doubt that the friendship will grow – five, ten countries, maybe even more, over time ”.
That said the US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, at an online event for members of the Association of Friends of Tel Aviv University, led by President Amnon Dick and lawyer Adi Olmert.
Regarding the handling of Iran and its treatment of the Arab states in relation to Israel, Friedman said: “We have withdrawn from the superpower agreement regarding the Iranian nuclear program and even tightened the sanctions against Iranian financial institutions. I think the country is effectively cut off from the world economy. That is having an effect. It turns out that the Iranians no longer have the resources they once had to carry out their malicious activities in Syria. There are signs of some retreat, something that was previously not believed possible, but there is movement in that direction. Hezbollah is weaker than it was a few years ago. We still have a lot to do in Iraq and Yemen is still a challenge, but we are working with our partners there, including of course the Israeli government, to increase the pressure on them. Now the Iranians see two things: they see that their situation will get worse if they continue on this path. They face many challenges internally, but they also see those who choose a path to peace with Israel and strengthen their ties with America grow stronger. By that I don’t mean militarily, but that building bilateral relations with Israel helps countries like the United Arab Emirates or Bahrain to prosper more, to be more secure and to unite with the greatest power on earth. So this has both a positive and a negative aspect, and I think they coexist. It’s kind of a strategy that complements itself. There are those of us in Washington who see it that way. The Iranians are against the deal with the Emirates, Bahrain and others and if they are so against it it has to be something that is good for both the world and the region, and I think it is ”.
Speaking of the Palestinian leadership, he said: “The US has given the Palestinian Authority more money per capita than any other. Overall, I think we have invested a huge amount of money in building Palestinian society since Oslo, and nothing has come of it. The tour has filled its pockets. Mahmoud Abbas is rich, his friends are rich. The Arab League has fed the Palestinians for a generation. I think the expectation of all these actors was that in the end the Palestinians would condemn terrorism, seek a realistic peace with Israel, and develop practical solutions. One of the things I learned in this job is that the Palestinian leadership has repeatedly turned down any economic opportunity for the West Bank because they believed it would harm their victim position and therefore preferred to continue down the same path even if this means suffering for their people. They have repeatedly turned down offers for real financial aid. I’m not talking about handouts, I’m talking about investments, real investments, in infrastructure in the West Bank. It has been on the table for three years, they don’t want it because it would mean normalizing diplomatic relations for them ”.
Friedman added, “As for the leadership, the question is who is the leadership. Two and a half million people live in the West Bank and two million in Gaza. There are two separate guides that are hostile to each other. Hamas poses a great threat to the Palestinian Authority. If elections were held tomorrow, none of us would know which side would win. Some say Hamas will win the West Bank and the Palestinian Authority will win the Gaza Strip because everyone is so dissatisfied with their current leadership. The reality is that there is no leadership. There is no one to shake hands with today to assure that tomorrow we will be able to move an agreement forward because no one is able to represent the Palestinian people. The Palestinians must stop following the account of their victimization to cling. It has served them faithfully for several generations, but I think those days are drawing to a close ”.
Friedman also said, “Israel is doing a lot to keep America safe. There is a tendency to believe that America is keeping Israel safe and of course the US is doing a lot for Israel in many ways, but in some ways Israel helps keep America safe because it has prospects and it faces certain risks, who make it more knowledgeable than anyone else. So I’m sure that in time, as to America’s mainstay here, and I won’t predict because I don’t know yet, but whatever happens when it weakens, it will to a reasonable extent Support for and dependence on Israel ”.
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