Jpost
Former Israeli Consul General to New York, Alon Pinkas, criticized US interference in Israeli internal political affairs in a conversation on Israel-US relations with Ron Kupman and Arieh Eldad on their show on 103FM radio on Friday.
Pinkas expressed anger over US President Donald Trump’s statements, such as his comments on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trial and the request for a pardon from President Isaac Herzog, as well as his involvement in deciding whether Marwan Barghouti should be released.
‘A person comes, admittedly the President of the United States, but a foreign head of state, and intervenes quite bluntly in the internal affairs of another country,’ Pinkas said.
He added that Trump ‘doesn’t understand at all how the system works in Israel. He thinks it’s like in the United States, where the president can pardon people at will, just like he pardoned himself. What does it mean that he’s calling for a pardon for Netanyahu? What does it mean that he’s considering the future of?’
He added regarding the release of Barghouti that Netanyahu should not listen to the American president’s demands: ‘In such a case, Netanyahu cannot agree. If he demands the release of Guel Ratzon, would you also have a discussion in the studio?’
Trump’s interests
‘The story is business-related; everything with him is give-and-take,’ explained the former consul about the American president’s motives.
‘Israel has nothing to offer, but the Saudis, Qataris, and Emiratis do. The only thing Israel could offer Trump is a ceasefire in Gaza, and from Trump’s perspective, Netanyahu violated his promise more than once.’
‘It was reported on POLITICO that the anger toward Israel was immense following its response to the ceasefire violation, and that’s when Trump decided that Vance’s and Rubio’s positions would be firm. Just look at how patronizing they sound towards us,’ Pinkas added.
If so, the question arises – is Israel becoming an American protectorate? ‘The story here is not about protection. The nature of the relationship between Israel and the United States is asymmetrical; we are kind of a ‘client state,’ and in the final calculation of ‘for and against’ over decades, Israel has benefited from it,’ he explained.
The change in relations with the Americans
In his view, Netanyahu plays a key role in the shift in American attitudes toward us.
‘Israel crossed the line on the question of who is the protectorate and who is the patron, and Netanyahu has a very poor track record on this issue, with the various manipulations and maneuvers he has performed. Trump – he grew fed up, and he decided to make it clear to Israel who the superpower is and who is not. It’s unpleasant.’
According to him, ‘When Biden was in office, and before him, Obama and even Clinton, he played the game. He would argue with the president and run to his Republican friends, who would then make a huge fuss. But now, there is a Republican administration in the White House, and these maneuvers are no longer relevant,’ he said.
‘Yesterday, a large Reuters poll was published showing that 59% of the American public supports US recognition of a Palestinian state,’ he added.