Every time in the past when the US has pressured Israel to do something the US has ended up regretting it.
After the Suez Crisis in 1956, Eisenhower pressured Israel into pulling its troops out of Sinai without any Egyptian quid pro quo. This played right into Soviet hands and helped to entrench Soviet influence in the ME for the next 20 years.
In 1981 the US joined other countries in condemning Israel for using force pre-emptively when it bombed Iraq`s nuclear reactor site. Twenty years later after 9/11 the US was embarrassed by its previous stance and asserted its own right to use force pre-emptively against apprehended terrorist attacks.
The list goes on. Obama has the power to pressure Israel but if the end result imperils Israel or encourages the Islamists he knows perfectly well that the American people - and history -will judge him harshly. |
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