Criticism in the US: The levers of pressure against the Netanyahu government have run out

The preparations for an Israeli attack on Iran and the public debate about the possibility of Israel attacking with nuclear weapons have raised criticism in the US in recent days of the Biden administration’s attitude towards the Netanyahu government, and that it seems that Washington has practically run out of levers of pressure against Jerusalem. Along with the apparent attack on Iran, officials in Washington express great disappointment with the conduct of Israel regarding the war in Lebanon, which joins a similar disappointment regarding the war in Gaza.network CNN reported this morning (Tuesday) that the Biden administration stopped actively pushing for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, after the attempt to promote the joint initiative with France for a ceasefire for 21 days. According to the report, there is a growing concern in the US that although Israel has promised that the ground operation in Lebanon will be limited – it will soon turn into a prolonged and large-scale conflict.

“We can’t stop them from acting, but we can at least try and influence what it will look like,” an American official toldCNN. “We support that they will harm the terrorists, harm the infrastructure and capabilities of Hezbollah, but we are also very aware that many times Israel has entered into what appear to be limited operations and in the end stayed there for months or years,” said Matthew Miller, spokesman for the US State Department .

Senior US officials also said that they recognize that the US has only limited leverage to influence Israel’s decisions regarding the response to Iran’s missile attack. The US expects to try to influence Israel’s current plans during Defense Minister Gallant’s visit to Washington tomorrow.

The current tension between Jerusalem and Washington comes at a time when we once again see that the personal tension between Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Biden is well present in the public arena, after the two leaders have not spoken to each other for about a month and a half. In recent days, Biden said that he intends to talk to Netanyahu, but such a conversation has not yet taken place, even though it seems that an Israeli attack on Iran is likely to happen in the near future.

The New York Times raised a series of questions about the tensions between Biden and Netanyahu, and what seems more and more like Biden is unable to influence Netanyahu’s decision-making in the war at all. “How do you put pressure on an ally who is struggling with an existential challenge? How far will you go if an ally ignores your advice? And 29 days until the presidential election, how do you explain the incessant violence, both to voters who think you treated Netanyahu with too much respect and to those who think you didn’t Enough to support Israel?”

President Biden says he doesn’t know if Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is trying to influence the election, in response to a reporter’s question.

“No administration has helped Israel more than I have. None… Bibi should remember that. And whether he’s trying to influence the… pic.twitter.com/Hbgfx0Qr55

— MSNBC (@MSNBC) October 4, 2024

On Friday, Biden addressed the extent of his support for Israel in the war, after being asked if he thought Netanyahu was trying to interfere in the US elections. “No president has ever helped Israel more than I have, no one, no one, no one, and Bibi should remember that. I don’t know if he is trying to interfere in the elections.”

Harris’ evasion of the question about Iran’s nuclear weapons

In this context, the one who may be harmed by the weakness of Biden’s conduct and policy vis-à-vis Netanyahu and Israel is Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate. This week she reiterated that she will continue to ensure that Israel has the right to defend itself – as she has already said many times. Even so, one of her statements about Iran raised many eyebrows.

In a recent 60 Minutes interview, Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris identified Iran as one of the United States’ greatest adversaries. However, when pressed on whether the U.S. would take military action against Iran’s nuclear weapons program, she declined… pic.twitter.com/gVve998eOv

— OSINT Aggregator (@AggregateOsint) October 8, 2024

As part of an interview for the network’s “60 Minutes” program CBS Harris was asked about Iran, and clarified that it is one of the USA’s biggest rivals, and that it has the blood of American citizens on its hands. “What we need to do is ensure that Iran can never achieve the ability to become a nuclear state, that is one of my biggest priorities.” When asked if she would choose a military option – if information is received that Iran is preparing to develop nuclear weapons, she replied: “I am not going to answer hypothetical questions.”