There is no US/Israel Alliance
June 15th 2008 11:15
The US and Israel do not share an alliance, allies share common goals which they work together to achieve. If anything, the US has amply proven it asks nothing of Israel and yet finds the need to drip feed the Israeli war machine a good two billion a year and provide it with protection from the UN with countless vetoes.
Some would argue Israel is a democracy and should be protected, that Israel’s existence as a free nation amongst all the savage dictatorships in the Middle East is important. Yet these same countries which surround Israel don't seem to have a problem with Israel, most have fairly strong ties to the US. Jordan has economic relations with Israel, the US sends people to be tortured in Egypt and despite what they like to say, have been negotiating peace treaties with Syria.
Given all this military 'aid' the US has been giving Israel why hasn't Israel developed the nerve to fight its own wars or even be part of the now ended 'Coalition of the Willing'? Why, of all the nations which were involved with invading Iraq and Afghanistan was Israel not one of then? If there is an alliance between Israel and the US then surely they would be allied together in war, to spread democracy throughout the Middle East.
If Israel continues to just take money and give nothing back there is no alliance, the US essentially takes care of Israel and Israel does nothing in return. In an ironic twist Israel uses some of that aid to develop its own weapons which it sells to China, a communist nation, one which is a potential threat to the US.
Ultimately if you want to argue with me you have to explain the simplest of all questions. If Israel is allies with the US why did it not join the 'Coalition of the Willing' and help the US in its invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq?
Is Israel too weak? Too vulnerable? Does it need to be cradled like a baby? Here's some more food for thought, this time more specifically for my fellow Australians though the rest of the world can chew on it some. We, Australia, do not have a very large military force and are about as far away from the Middle East as is geographically, economically and politically possible yet we went to war with the US. In the process we fueled terrorism in Indonesia, we caught the attention of people who would otherwise be uninterested in us, in short, we made ourselves a vulnerable target and were attacked as such simply by going to war.
This, despite the US refusing to fulfill its obligations to Australia as an ally during the Timor crisis, one which was very real and unlike the whole scandal that is Iraq. We went to war with the US, we went to Iraq based on lies and propaganda, we joined them in a fruitless war and made ourselves vulnerable, and were indeed attacked, because of it.
Why us? Why not Israel? A country which prides itself on its military capacity? One which is right there in the thick of things, which claims its continued existence depends on the wars the US, and consequently, we, are fighting.
Some would argue Israel is a democracy and should be protected, that Israel’s existence as a free nation amongst all the savage dictatorships in the Middle East is important. Yet these same countries which surround Israel don't seem to have a problem with Israel, most have fairly strong ties to the US. Jordan has economic relations with Israel, the US sends people to be tortured in Egypt and despite what they like to say, have been negotiating peace treaties with Syria.
Given all this military 'aid' the US has been giving Israel why hasn't Israel developed the nerve to fight its own wars or even be part of the now ended 'Coalition of the Willing'? Why, of all the nations which were involved with invading Iraq and Afghanistan was Israel not one of then? If there is an alliance between Israel and the US then surely they would be allied together in war, to spread democracy throughout the Middle East.
If Israel continues to just take money and give nothing back there is no alliance, the US essentially takes care of Israel and Israel does nothing in return. In an ironic twist Israel uses some of that aid to develop its own weapons which it sells to China, a communist nation, one which is a potential threat to the US.
Ultimately if you want to argue with me you have to explain the simplest of all questions. If Israel is allies with the US why did it not join the 'Coalition of the Willing' and help the US in its invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq?
Is Israel too weak? Too vulnerable? Does it need to be cradled like a baby? Here's some more food for thought, this time more specifically for my fellow Australians though the rest of the world can chew on it some. We, Australia, do not have a very large military force and are about as far away from the Middle East as is geographically, economically and politically possible yet we went to war with the US. In the process we fueled terrorism in Indonesia, we caught the attention of people who would otherwise be uninterested in us, in short, we made ourselves a vulnerable target and were attacked as such simply by going to war.
This, despite the US refusing to fulfill its obligations to Australia as an ally during the Timor crisis, one which was very real and unlike the whole scandal that is Iraq. We went to war with the US, we went to Iraq based on lies and propaganda, we joined them in a fruitless war and made ourselves vulnerable, and were indeed attacked, because of it.
Why us? Why not Israel? A country which prides itself on its military capacity? One which is right there in the thick of things, which claims its continued existence depends on the wars the US, and consequently, we, are fighting.
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Comment by Anonymous
Comment by Ahmed
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
Comment by tlcorbin
Comment by Ahmed
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
I'll be happy to be proven wrong, but then agian, all I hear is rhetoric on the matter.
Comment by Geoff Egan
Noise Fanatic
As much as Anonymous is an idiot, he does make a valid point that Israeli boots on Arab soil would start another Arab-Israeli War, which would galvanise the Arab population. Exactly the opposite of what the US wants to happen.
Also Israel has in the past taken far more direct action against Middle Easter 'WMDs' (other than their own) by directly bombing Iraqi installments in the 80s, without being involved in any war.
Comment by RubySoho
Music Zone
Thought Zone
Just how mighty will that Israeli military be without the two billion US dollars it receives each year?
Comment by TimmyH
Tech News
Can you HACK it?
Genyration
Isreal has never fought its own wars? Thats stupid. No Ally has ever sent troops in aid of Israel. I'm sorry,could you tell me again the last time the United States participated in a war with Israel against a coalition of Arab States? No i didn't think so...
Forget the $2 billion they get from the U.S. per annum, before the 2 Arab-Israeli conflicts Israel was armed by France, Russia and Britain.
Mate, some simple fact checking please! You clearly have no knowledge of Middle East history.
And this...
"We, Australia, do not have a very large military force and are about as far away from the Middle East as is geographically, economically and politically possible yet we went to war with the US. In the process we fueled terrorism in Indonesia, we caught the attention of people who would otherwise be uninterested in us, in short, we made ourselves a vulnerable target and were attacked as such simply by going to war. "
not to mention the apalling grammar of the last sentence, is just stupid.
Australia going to war in Iraq did NOT fuel terrorism in Indonesia. That probably has more to do with our lack of respect for Islamic culture here and abroad and our support of East Timor's independence. Interestingly Australia was also one of the only countries to support Indonesian Independence some years ago.
We did not MAKE ourselves a vulnerable target, we already were. "WE" have not at any stage been attacked by any terrorist group. There has never been a terrorist attack on Australian soil, unless perhaps you consider the Eureka Stockade and the uprisings of the "Young Guard" in Sydney during the 1930's to be terrorist attacks.
In short, this is the most ridiculous rubbish I have ever read. And I am MASSIVELY anti-Zionist.
Blogging might be about expressing an opinion within the format created by user-generated content. But this sort of post undermines the entire basis of the practice.
Check your facts man, it's not that hard.
Regards,
Tim
Comment by tlcorbin
I stand corrected, thanks. Now I want to understand why isn't there an agreement.
Comment by Ahmed
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
While Australia and the US have the ANZUS and Free Trade Agreement we do not 'need' the US nearly as much as Israel. Israel recieved two billion a year from the US to build its military, Australia does not, Israel says it needs this 'aid' to maintain its existence, Australia has never mentioned anything about needing to build a massive army, funded by a foreign power, to maintain its own existence. The entire Israeli economy was kickstarted and continues to chug because of US 'aid'. I'd love it if them american sstarted giving us two billion a year, would do our economy wonders. It's a pity communism isn't such a big issue these days so we're just a little 'ol island down under...
In fact not too long ago, I believe it was our shadow foreign minister, who said that in the event of a standoff between the US and China we would ally with China. We are really more dependent on China than we are on the US in most ways.
What I don't understand is why Israel has a massive military force and exists really as a close 'ally' to the US in the middle east if it does not act at all. All we understand of Israel is that it exists and that is enough for it to fulfil its purpouse as an ally?
The past is another issue altogether, for me I'm just trying to understand the current. The idea of supporting the war yet not supporting it. Israel acts as if its afraid of Iran yet if it was any other country it would defend itself rather than fallback and rely on an ally. Is Israel just existing stagnant?
I'm sorry TimmyH, your arguments are drifting too much into personal attack and rhetoric for me to try and respond in a dignified way. I'm not interested in a shouting match but rather a discussion.
Corbin, I hear a lot, about it being 'difficult' to understand Israel/American relations. I think it would be a lot easier to understand their alliance if they put it down on paper, under what terms it exists, why it exists and for how much longer it will exist. I think it would help everyone, from any side of the 'debate', to get a better idea of what might be going on.