As the Palestinian-Israeli conflict continues to escalate, the attitude of the United States has aroused the attention and criticism of the international community. Recently, the United States announced a rare punitive measure that will impose visa restrictions on some Israelis in the West Bank. What are the reasons for this decision, which seems to be contrary to the consistent pro-Israel position of the United States?
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced in a statement that the U.S. will impose visa restrictions on a number of Israelis in the West Bank who are believed to have been involved in violence that undermines peace, security and stability there, according to Globo.com. This measure not only targets these individuals themselves, but also their immediate family members, showing that the United States wants to increase the impact of sanctions by hitting entire families.
Blinken) This measure was not sudden, but foreshadowed. Last month, the United States disclosed an internal Biden document, which showed that Biden asked Blinken and Treasury Secretary Yellen to develop a sanctions package against some Israelis in the West Bank. A senior U.S. ** revealed that the document has been sent to the relevant departments and asked them to take action as soon as possible.
Why did the U.S. attack the Israelis?
This move by the United States shows that the United States has lost patience with the extreme behavior of the Israelis. First of all, Biden** has always insisted on supporting the "two-state solution", that is, Israel and Palestine each establishing independent states to resolve the long-standing Palestinian-Israeli conflict. This position has been made clear during the Biden campaign, although it is also partly to distinguish itself from Trump, but it also reflects Biden's true thoughts.
Second, Biden** has also repeatedly warned and appealed to Israelis for violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. Biden has directly told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that these extremist acts of violence must stop, and demanded that Israel hold those involved accountable. Biden also urged Israel to do more to prevent violence. However, the Israeli side turned a deaf ear to Biden's words and even expressed its "dissatisfaction" and "disappointment" with Biden in public.
The multiple interests and balance of the United States.
On the other hand, this US sanction against Israel also reflects the complex interests of the United States in the Middle East. On the one hand, immediately after the outbreak of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the United States expressed its support for Israel, dispatched an aircraft carrier battle group to provide support for Israel, and used its veto power to escort Israel at the UN Security Council many times. On the other hand, at the strategic level, the United States also needs to maintain cooperative relations with Arab countries, and the Arab world is very sensitive to the Palestinian issue. Therefore, the United States needs to use a variety of means, while warning Iran not to interfere in the current round of conflict, and at the same time to ease the discontent of the Arab world by imposing sanctions on Israelis. Therefore, it can be seen that the United States has recently intensified its criticism and crackdown on the extremist behavior of the Israelis.
The ruins of Gaza) If the United States does not do this, the current round of conflict is likely to further expand, leading to tensions in international relations and even involving more countries, including Iran, which is opposed to the United States. In this way, it will not only harm Biden's political interests, but also affect the interests of the United States. Netanyahu, however, has blatantly denied the existence of violence in the West Bank and told Biden that it is "something that does not exist." This kind of public denial has directly weakened the role and credibility of the United States in the international arena. It can be said that Biden is standing up for Israel's interests, while Israel is ignoring American interests. In this case, US sanctions against Israelis are also excusable.
What is the impact of U.S. sanctions?
Finally, at this sensitive moment, the sanctions imposed by the United States on the Israelis also have a sense of "killing chickens and making an example of monkeys." As we mentioned earlier, Biden has always supported the two-state solution and demanded that Israel stop harming civilians. However, the news in the past two days shows that the Israeli army has carried out a large-scale bombardment of the Gaza area, causing a lot of ** and destruction, and the refugee camp has also been destroyed. Subsequently, Netanyahu announced that he would expand the scale of the ground operation, and the next day, the Israeli army bombed many houses and arrested 35 medical personnel, which was undoubtedly a "slap in the face" of Biden.
Houses in Gaza were destroyed) The behavior of the Israeli army has also triggered strong condemnation from the international community, and many United Nations ** have issued warnings in succession, saying that Gaza will face an "apocalyptic" situation, and the United Nations ** said that it has been proved that no place in Gaza is safe. At the 44th summit of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, Israel was also publicly accused of attacking civilian facilities and harming civilians.
Under such circumstances, the United States, as an ally that has always been a staunch supporter of Israel, has naturally become one of the targets of criticism from the outside world. Therefore, the United States needs to make its position clear to the international community by imposing sanctions on Israelis, and at the same time to warn Israel that the United States does not approve of all of Israel's actions. However, we must also be clear that this move by the United States is only a political means, but a political means, and cannot directly change the situation of the conflict, nor can it mean that the United States has changed its support for Israel. Therefore, we still need to maintain an objective and rational attitude towards this US sanction, and not be too optimistic or pessimistic.
In short, the rare sanctions imposed by the United States on the Israelis are a manifestation of the multiple interests and balance of the United States in the Middle East, a warning and a signal from the United States to Israel, and a way for the United States to make clear its position and attitude to the international community. However, this sanction does not fundamentally solve the problem of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, nor does it indicate a fundamental change in the relationship between the United States and Israel. Therefore, we also need to pay attention to the further developments of the United States in the Middle East and the subsequent development of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.