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Five Tips for John Kerry In Dealing With Israel

Nadav Eyal offers ideas for Senator John Kerry, nominee for US Secretary of State, on how best to manage US-Israel relations.
Israel's Defence Minister Ehud Barak (R) meets U.S. Senator John Kerry (D-MA) (L) in Tel Aviv February 19, 2009, in this picture released by the Israeli Defence Ministry. The highest-ranking U.S. delegation to visit the Gaza Strip in years toured bomb-damaged buildings on Thursday and blamed the enclave's Hamas rulers for provoking Israel's wrath with cross-border rocket attacks.Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Kerry and two members of the House of Representatives, Brian Baird and Keith Ellison,
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Welcome to the Middle East, Mr. John Kerry. True, you are an authority on foreign affairs and you bring with you to the job vast knowledge and rich experience. However, all that does not render you error proof. And if you need justification for this, take Hillary Clinton as a case in point — she is a living example of the axiom that expertise alone does not keep you from failure.

So, in anticipation of your collaboration with the next Israeli prime minister — which, by the way, is going to be Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — here are some tips to help you cope with Israel and the Israeli public in the next few years.

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