United States Middle East Envoy Jason Greenblatt has come to Israel following elections to ensure the acceptance of President Donald Trump’s “deal of the century” plan.
Channel 13 News reported Thursday morning that Greenblatt is expected to meet separately with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu (Likud) and Blue & White party leader Benny Gantz.
The objective of Greenblatt’s “shuttle diplomacy” was likely to promote the Trump administration’s preference for an Israeli “unity government” that would ease the acceptance of Washington’s regional agenda.
Netanyahu said during the last week of his election campaign that the political component of Trump’s plan would be released within days of Tuesday’s election. There are voices within the Trump administration, however, saying that the plan won’t be revealed until a new Israeli governing coalition is formed.
Although the administration announced earlier this month that Greenblatt would step down from his position following the plan’s release, Trump’s envoy hinted at a New York event last week that he might actually continue in his role even after the plan is unveiled.
“Although I have announced my departure,” he said, “I am trying to stay until the plan is launched.”
“If the plan is launched soon, I will stay. And if the plan is launched and we get traction, I hope to stay longer.”
On Sunday, two days prior to national elections, Yamina party leaders presented a map of the territorial concessions they suspect the new American plan would demand of Israel.
The map showed the entire West Bank in black, with white spots representing Jewish communities and white lines representing roads connecting them. Yamina claimed that Trump plans to force Israel to surrender the Samaria and Judea regions while allowing the Jewish communities to remain as enclaves protected by Israel.
After the White House denied the validity of Yamina’s map, party leader Ayelet Shaked said that Israelis deserve to know the details of Trump’s plan before they vote.
“Mr. Prime Minister, where is the real map?” Shaked demanded of Netanyahu from a press conference.
“Could it be more destructive than the map we publicized? If this is not the real map, we want to see the real map today, before we go to the polls. The people of Israel deserve to know what we’re voting on.”
Shaked was correct in assuming that Tuesday’s elections were very much about whether or not Israel should accept the mysterious Trump plan – a plan rumored to stay true to Washington’s traditional policy of dividing Israel into two states. Those seeking to resist the partition of the country should have voted for a list that would join a Netanyahu-led coalition but not allow the prime minister to succumb to Trump’s demands.
Netanyahu attempted to obscure this reality by running a nationalist campaign that blurred all lines between his Likud and Shaked’s Yamina. As part of his strategy, he deliberately competed directly with Yamina and promoted the idea that a large Likud was the best way to ensure a nationalist government.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The fact that Netanyahu ran a nationalist campaign that competed with Yamina rather than with Blue & White or Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu for votes reveals that the prime minister was ultimately planning to form a “unity government” with Gantz.
Despite all the posturing and political theater taking place in the wake of this week’s elections, the public should expect a government comprised of Likud and Blue & White, not because it’s what’s best for the nation but because it’s what Trump wants in order to advance his plan.
