“Benjamin Netanyahu has chalked up a genuine diplomatic accomplishment,” opined a senior Haaretz pundit about Israel's prime minister after US President Donald Trump’s Dec. 6 declaration recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Not only has the focus shifted from the police investigations embroiling Netanyahu, he noted, “It has moved to the prime minister’s comfort zone: the political-security arena.” As the headline for a report of Trump’s pronouncement, News 1 proclaimed, “Tremendous achievement. Netanyahu knew what he was doing.” A respected journalist at Globes waxed poetic, proclaiming, “Netanyahu’s Jerusalem of gold.” She also wrote, tongue-in-cheek, “Despite being suspected of corruption, the prime minister hasn’t stopped working and won’t let anyone take away his credit on Jerusalem.”
Netanyahu rushed to leverage the presidential prize, calling on other countries to follow Trump’s lead, stating, “The president's decision is an important step toward peace.” How, exactly, one might ask, is a unilateral move on such a controversial issue a boon for peace? “It connects everyone to reality,” the peace expert explained.
Not only did no major international players follow in Trump’s footsteps, 14 of 15 UN Security Council members voted against him. European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini suggested to Netanyahu that he forget about a change in the EU’s position on Jerusalem as long as Israel does not reach agreement with the Palestinians regarding the city’s status. On Dec. 21 in the UN General Assembly, 128 members voted to reject US recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital. Only seven non-influential countries — Guatemala, Honduras, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau and Togo — voted with the United States and Israel against the resolution.
The sweeping rebuff of Trump’s proclamation reflects the failure of Netanyahu’s diplomacy in his dual role as Israel’s prime minister and foreign minister. The futility of his attempts to turn Asia into a base of Israeli support as an alternative to Europe has been exposed.
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