Israel has found better things to do than join the Sane World in defeating the War Criminal, Vladimir Putin.
Here I am on February 21st – sticking my neck out, talking about my bad dream that suggests Putin is going to invade Ukraine. Three days later – I was right! I have no friends and family. They called me nuts. They had better things to do. Well, try to EVADE THE DEVIL and his bombing of maternity hospitals. You – will submit! Satan will be in YOUR mind – all day!
John Presco
Suddenly, everyone is helping the Ukrainians. The ferocity of the Russian assault on an outgunned neighbor has stiffened spines from Washington to London and sent post-Cold War taboos tumbling across Europe.
Pacifist Germany is dispatching weaponry and has promised to spend 2% of GDP on defense going forward. The EU is suddenly in the arms trade, sending fighter jets to the Ukrainians. Even the Swiss have abandoned their prized neutrality and joined the attack on Russia’s financial markets.
Only Israel is standing aside, and it’s important to understand why.
Pressed by Ukraine’s president — and now global hero — Volodymyr Zelenskyy to send the weaponry that the country needs to repel the Russians, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett reportedly refused.
That attempt to avoid provoking Russia has angered many, including staunch Israel ally Lindsey Graham.
The Republican senator, who has Prime Minister Bennett’s ear, told Fox News that it was “in everyone’s interest” to defend Ukraine.
When asked for Stinger missiles, Graham told the host, “apparently Israel said no. So, I’ll get on the phone to Israel. You know, we stand up for Israel with the Iron Dome,” said the South Carolina senator.
The prime minister should explain that his hands are tied — and that the fault is entirely America’s.
If Israel were to intervene on behalf of Ukraine, Russia would end Israel’s freedom to attack Iran’s missile buildup in Syria— and might well greenlight a devastating attack by Iranian forces in the country.
That strategic predicament is a relatively recent development.
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Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett attends a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister’s office in Jerusalem, February 27, 2022. Abir Sultan/Pool via REUTERS
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TEL AVIV, March 1 (Reuters) – The Ukrainian envoy to Israel tearfully implored it to provide more war aid on Tuesday even as Prime Minister Naftali Bennett defended his government’s open channels to both Kyiv and Moscow as a means of offering “quiet” help.
While the Israeli foreign minister has condemned the Russian invasion, Bennett’s rhetoric has been circumspect. At Kyiv’s behest, he proposed Israel mediate peace talks. He has also voiced solidarity with Ukraine and sent it humanitarian relief.Report ad
Ambassador Yevgen Korniychuk said Israel had not met Ukraine’s request for helmets and “defensive weapons” like those given by Western powers. Israel should yank Russian broadcasters popular with its big former Soviet immigrant community, he said.
“We want Israel to support us by all means in these difficult days,” he told reporters, tears in his eyes. “We are asking for (its) humanity, to understand our people’s needs.”Report ad
Israel is keen to keep rank with its U.S. ally on the crisis. But it is also mindful of Moscow’s military sway in next-door Syria, where it regularly strikes Iranian targets. Israeli-Russian contacts prevent them trading fire by accident.
“Israel effectively has a security border with Russia,” Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said in a televised statement. “Our cooperation mechanism assists in our determined battle against Iranian entrenchment on our northern border.”Report ad
Bennett said Israel’s “measured and responsible approach” to the crisis “allows us not only to guard our interests, but also to be useful — to be a credible player, one of the few that can communicate directly with both parties, and assist as required”.
“And we are indeed helping — quietly,” he said in a speech at Mossad intelligence headquarters, according to his office.
The Russian embassy declined to comment.
Korniychuk called on Israel to expand its asylum criteria for Ukrainian refugees. Israel — population 9.2 million — says it is focusing on the 40,000 Ukrainian Jews and 180,000 Ukrainians with Jewish family ties who might want to immigrate.
Rosamond Press 