Biden's signal
The Jerusalem Post
07-Jul-2009 (3 comments)

There's little doubt that US Vice President Joe Biden was signaling, in his Sunday television interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos, that the Obama administration would not stand in the way if Israel chose military force to stop Iran from building nuclear weapons.

GS: Prime Minister Netanyahu has made it pretty clear that he agreed with President Obama to give until the end of the year for this whole process of engagement to work. After that, he's prepared to take matters into his own hands. Is that the right approach?

Biden: Look, Israel can determine for itself - it's a sovereign nation - what's in their interest and what they decide to do relative to Iran and anyone else.

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Dan Huck

You Don't Understand "Absolutely Not"?

by Dan Huck on Tue Jul 07, 2009 11:30 PM PDT

To me it is mind boggling to see in the Israeli and US media a constant delusional interpretation of the plain words Biden used in the interview with Stephanopolis. Biden and Obama have been very clear dealing with (I can't speak for them, but how it comes across to me) a very serious and intense effort on the part of Israeli leadership to FORCE American compliance with Israel's attempted management of the Iran issue. This has been hammered for the past few days especially.  It's interesting to watch our administration say "NO". A couple of quotes are indicative:
Biden to GS: "There is no pressure from any nation that's going to alter our behavior as to how we proceed."
Biden to GS: "We have a right and we will determine what's in our interests"
Israel seems intent on manhandling us into the position they want us in, and we're not buying.
Israel is having trouble understanding Obama's "absolutely not", when asked if he was giving a green light to Israel to bomb Iran's nuclear sites.
Israel has trouble dealing with America's politeness. When the editorialist says "we don't need (Biden's) confirmation we are a sovereign country", in addition to indulging in a certain gratuitous rudeness which is not so unusual in Israeli politics, he appears unwilling to realize what Biden is saying is 'Look, We, America, are a sovereign country - You, Israel, you are not us, you are telling us what to do, however, we have determined to deal with Iran as sovereign nations deal with each other - through diplomacy'.
And by the way, let's quit trying to change the subject. Are you going to freeze settlement expansion so that we can tell our other friends in the international community that you are law abiding people, and have every intention of abiding with the Road Map for Peace you are signatories to?


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ali_UK

Israel can't have it both ways

by ali_UK on Wed Jul 08, 2009 03:57 AM PDT

Israel can not accpet hand outs in the order of billions of $$'s every year from USA , and then start imposing their foreign policy on to USA.

Obama shoud threaten ( If he dares with AIPAC around ) to cut these hand outs and force Israel to behave for once.


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rosie is roxy is roshan

Foreign Policy article with analysis from various

by rosie is roxy is roshan on Tue Jul 07, 2009 11:57 PM PDT

commentators. Click on link from huffpost blurb, oaragraoh 2:

 No change in Iran policy, White House insists. "As White House and Office of the Vice President aides formed a united front against widespread media speculation about a change in policy signaled by Vice President Joseph Biden's statement on a Sunday news show that Israel is a 'sovereign nation' that could 'determine for itself' how to deal with threats from Iran, analysts said that Israel may be wary of any such green light in any case."

That's the lede of Laura Rozen's latest for Foreign Policy. It's the most comprehensive piece written thus far on Biden's remarks and the wide range of reactions. There's way too much to excerpt -- you should just read the complete piece.


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