Israel ties could ease Obama-era tensions

Jerusalem, Aug. 13: During Joe Biden’s first trip to Israel in 1973, he met prime minister Golda Meir, who chain-smoked as she detailed regional security threats days before the Yom Kippur War. Biden, a newly elected US senator at the time, later described that meeting as “one of the most consequential” of his life.

In the more than four decades since, his career has been marked by a staunch defence of Israel, especially in its handling of the Palestinian conflict.

Biden, set to become the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee next week, will face in Donald Trump a president whom Prime

Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described as Israel’s best friend to ever sit in the White House.

The warm ties contrast with Netanyahu’s acrimonious relationship with Biden’s old boss, former president Barack Obama.

But some experts say a Biden win would be welcomed across Israel’s political and military establishment — not just by Netanyahu’s rivals on the left.

Biden has long been a vocal supporter of the Jewish state, declaring in a 2015 speech that the US must uphold its “sacred promise to protect the homeland of the Jewish people”. Kamala Harris, Biden’s vice-presidential nominee, is also regarded as a staunch backer of the Jewish state.

After hosting a delegation from the main pro-Israel lobby AIPAC in her office in California last year, she wrote on Twitter of the “need for a strong US-Israel alliance, the right of Israel to defend itself, and my commitment to combat anti-Semitism in our country and around the world”.

A strong commitment to defending Israel is key to winning the trust of Israeli leaders, perpetually sensitive to international criticism. “We like people who love us,” said Nadav Tamir, a former diplomat and foreign policy advisor to president Shimon Peres. “There is no doubt Biden is a friend who has very strong emotions for Israel,” he said.

Experts suggested Biden could also restore the traditional American role of interlocutor between Israel and the Palestinians.

The Palestinian Authority has cut ties with Trump, accusing him of egregious bias towards Israel.

Biden “will do much better than Trump on the real issues because he understands that the Israel-Palestinian issue is not a zerosum game,” Tamir said.

Biden served in an Obama administration that often clashed with Israel.