Lieberman pulls "Israel" card on Dean......

[sarettah]

Ok, the gist of this is that Lieberman accused Dean of breaking with a 50 year record "in which presidents, Republicans and Democrats, members of Congress of both parties have supported our relationship with Israel."

That comment ignores the actual history of U.S.- Israeli relations. While the U.S. and Israel have usually voted together in the U.N., the U.S. has far from supported Israel during the past 50 years. Prior to 1964, the U.S. provided little if any actual support to Israel. There was money coming, but it was private money, not government money. The U.S. did not provide arms or material support of any kind. The French were Israel's primary supplier of arms etc. http://hnn.us/articles/751.html

Following World War II and the Holocaust, the United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 181 on November 29, 1947, which devised a plan to partition the British mandate of Palestine. The Jewish community of Palestine accepted the plan, but the Arabs rejected it. Britain withdrew from mandatory Palestine on May 14, 1948, and Israel declared itself a State. Upon Israel's declaration of statehood, both the United States and the Soviet Union immediately recognized the state of Israel.

President Harry Truman, with the urging of his executive assistant, Clark Clifford, acted because he felt "it was the right thing to do." The Soviet motive was less altruistic. Because the government of Israel was controlled by the Labor Party, the Soviets believed Israel would become part of the Soviet Bloc and provide a Soviet entree into the Middle East. Israel chose the West and the Soviets were disappointed. The Soviets then courted favor with Arab countries and developed a hostile position to Israel.

Although the United States immediately recognized Israel, it also strictly enforced the Neutrality Act which prohibited the sale or transfer of any military weapons to Israel. The 1948 War of Independence established the state of Israel. No official assistance was provided by the United States. For the first 17 years of its existence, Israel did not receive any military or economic aid from the United States government. In 1948, individual U.S. citizens attempted to send arms to Israel in violation of the Neutrality Act. Some efforts were successful. Some efforts failed and individuals were prosecuted in federal courts. Some were treated sternly, and others were treated more sympathetically. (The first U.S. military weapons sold to Israel by the U.S. government were a few defensive Hawk antiaircraft missile batteries in 1964.)

Still, in the late 1940s, the majority of American Jews were not in favor of a Jewish state in Palestine.Israel shopped for arms around the world and acquired a varied inventory of military hardware. During this time frame, France was fighting Arabs in Algeria and thus, according to the ancient Middle East adage, "The enemy of my enemy is my friend," France became Israel's friend and primary supplier of military hardware.

Israel bought jet fighters from France. First the Ouragan, then Mysteres, Vatours, Super Mysteres, and finally, the Mirage IIIC, which the French manufacturer Desault developed in cooperation with Israel and with the loan of Israel's chief test pilot, Colonel Danny Shapira.

In 1956, President Nasser of Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal and closed the Strait of Tiran. Israel joined England and France in operation Musketeer, a military action which swiftly captured the Sinai and the Suez Canal.

Following their military success, England, France, and Israel were coerced to withdraw from the canal and the Sinai by the United States under the policy of President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles.

At this point, the relationship between the U.S. and Israel became strained and cold.

The Israelis continued to rely on their French military arms supplier until the 1960s, when Charles de Gaulle came to power. De Gaulle made peace with the Arabs and gave up the French claim to Algeria. DeGaulle then began to mend fences with the Arabs and the first victim of this new reality was the French-Israel connection.

By 1966, Israel had purchased and taken delivery of 76 Mirage IIIC jet aircraft and had purchased and paid for 50 more. DeGaulle refused to deliver the 50 additional jets and he also refused to refund the purchase price, which Israel had paid in full. France also constructed some missile boats for Israel at the Port of Cherbourg for which Israel had also paid in full. DeGaulle refused to deliver the boats but they ultimately found their way to Israel by way of an incredible Israeli intelligence caper. (That fascinating story is told in The Boats of Cherbourg by Abraham Rabinovich.)

In fact, prior to Johnson getting into office in 1964, the U.S. administrations were not in particular support of Israel at all : http://www.washington-report.org/backissue...196/9611096.htm

"Up to Johnson’s presidency, no administration had been as completely pro-Israel and anti-Arab as his. Harry S Truman, while remembered as a warm friend of Israel, was more interested in his own election than Israel’s fate. After winning office on his own in 1948 with the support of the Jewish vote, he seemed to lose interest in the Jewish state.2

Dwight D. Eisenhower was distinctly cool toward Israel, seeing it as a major irritant in America’s relations with the Arab world and U.S. access to oil. There were no powerful partisans of Israel in his administration and his secretary of state, John Foster Dulles, was a frequent critic of Israel. Kennedy was considerably warmer toward the Jewish state and became the first president to begin providing major weapons to it, breaking an embargo in place since 1947.3 Yet he valued the U.S. position in the Arab world, particularly with Egypt’s Gamal Abdel Nasser, and as a result maintained a fairly even-handed policy despite having a number of pro-Israel officials in his administration.

All this changed dramatically under Johnson. Not only was he personally a strong supporter of the Jewish state but he had a number of high officials, advisers and friends who shared his view. These included officials within the administration such as McGeorge Bundy, Clark Clifford, Arthur Goldberg, Harry McPherson, John Roche, the Rostow brothers, Walt and Eugene, and Ben Wattenberg."

In 1967 (the six day war) the U.S. stated it was neutral and NOT an ally of Israel.

In 1967, Israel was threatened with destruction by Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and other Arab countries and the June 1967 war occurred. An excellent account of this war, commonly called the "Six Day War," was recently published by Michael Oren - Six Days of War (Oxford Press, 2002). Prior to the Six Day War, the continued existence of Israel was in doubt. The U.S. relationship was becoming warmer but at best the U.S. was a friendly neutral. Dean Rusk said that being neutral was not an expression of indifference, but Israel was not an ally. At the outbreak of the Six Day War, State Department Spokesman Robert McClosky announced on behalf of the United States: "Our position [on the war] is neutral in thought, word, and deed."

and the Liberty incident in 1967 added strains to the relationship
http://ussliberty.org/cliffor2.txt

f. The unprovoked attack on the Liberty constitutes a flagrant act
of gross negligence for which the Israeli Government should be held
completely responsible, and the Israeli military personnel involved
should be punished

It was not until after 1967 that the U.S. warmed up to Israel in any significant manner.

Following Israel's stunning victory in the Six Day War, a euphoria set in around the world and strong support for the state of Israel developed in the United States. American public opinion swung dramatically in favor of Israel and for the first time in history, a majority of American Jews became Zionists, that is they supported the concept of a Jewish state.

Under Nixon U.S. support to Israel was in question at first. The U.S. wa providing arms to the various Arab nations while continuing some support for Israel. The administration also refused to recognize the territory gained by Israel in 1967. http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/20th/nixon...on-mideast.html . But during the 1973 war, Nixon authorized an airlift that is credited with saving Isareal from destruction. In June 1974, Nixon became the first president to actually visit Israel.

Nixon and the Mideast
pictures
support for the "dual pillar" of Saudia Arabia and Iran, but also support for Israel

Nixon Doctrine caused increase in foreign aid, arms exports

U.S. did not recognize territory gained by Israel in 1967 Six-Day War

Russian missiles to Egypt after Six-Day War

Jordan crisis Sept. 1970 - Syrian tank invasion - PLO blow up 3 airliners - Hussein expels PLO

Nassar died Sept. 28, 1970 - Anwar Sadat planned next war with Faisal of SA and Assad of Syria - Russian aid increased - SCUD missiles with 200-mile range by 1973 - Russian advisers expelled July 18, 1973, when Russia refused increase in aid to Egypt after Nixon's trip to Moscow in May and the USSR-US.grain deal 7/8

Yom Kippur War began Oct. 6, 1973 - Egypt and Syria attack Israel

huge Israeli losses Oct. 6-7 - 2000 dead, 340 captured, 49 planes, 500 tanks

Nixon approved massive airlift to Israel, over objections of Secretary of Defense John Schlesinger and Secretary of State Kissinger who feared Arab oil embargo and Russian intervention

Oct. 11 - C5A cargo jets began to deliver 200 tons per day to Israel

Oct. 12 - War Powers Act passed

Oct. 13 - UN passed resolution for ceasefire based on resol. 232 from 1967

Oct. 15 - Israel crossed Suez and attacked West Bank in Egypt

Oct. 18 - Russia supported UN ceasefire

Oct. 19 - SA asked U.S. to support resol. 232, but Nixon asked Congress for $2.2b emerg aid for Israel

Oct. 20 - SA began oil embargo - but U.S. imports continued from other countries

Kissinger flew to Moscow Oct. 20 with the "full authority" to negotiate a ceasefire

Oct. 22 - U.N. approved Russian. ceasefire-in-place, but ignored by Israel, esp. by Gen. Ariel Sharon, hero of the war and opponent of peace with Arabs - Israel seeking to surround and trap the Egyptian 3rd Corps of 35,000 on the East Bank and isolate Suez City

Oct. 24 - Brezhnev ultimatum - ceasefire must be enforced by joint US-USSR force to save Egyptian army, Or Russia would intervene unilaterally - Russia went on military alert and began to resupply Egyptian 2nd Army in the north, supposedly with nuclear warheads on SCUD missiles.

Oct. 25 - Nixon order DEFCON 3 alert and sent note to Brezhnev urging UN solution

Oct. 26 - Russian alert ended - UN resol 338 to create 7000-man buffer zone force from non-nuclear members

Kissinger began "shuttle diplomacy" 1973-75

Since the Nixon administration, the U.S. support for Israel has pretty much continued with some ups and downs (pollard for instance) but you can hardly call it 50 years of clear support for Israel....

IMHO of course


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http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=stor...emocrats_debate

Presidential Elections - AP

Lieberman Accuses Dean Over Israel
40 minutes ago

By RON FOURNIER, AP Political Writer

BALTIMORE - Sen. Joe Lieberman (news - web sites) accused Howard Dean (news - web sites) in a campaign debate Tuesday night of turning his back on Israel, and the Democratic presidential front-runner shot back that he and former President Bill Clinton (news - web sites) held the same view on the issue.
..............................
The 2000 Democratic vice presidential candidate, Lieberman said comments Dean made last week about the Middle East "break a 50-year record in which presidents, Republicans and Democrats, members of Congress of both parties have supported our relationship with Israel."



Last edited by sarettah at Sep 10 2003, 07:35 AM