Al-Monitor's Ben Caspit reported July 10 for Maariv that President Donald Trump was considering signing a defense treaty with Israel. Such prospects surface every few years with advocates on both sides and little strong opposition, but such a deal has never materialized.

I tried to promote the idea in the 80s and 90s in the various official positions I held, but the responses from Washington claimed there was no need for anything more than the memorandas of understanding between the countries. At the same time, there was concern in Jerusalem from across the political spectrum that a treaty commitment would curb Israel's independence and tie its hands unnecessarily.

As I wrote in June 2018, Trump’s friendliness toward Israel consists mostly of hollow declarations. Examples include the American recognition of Israel’s annexation of the Golan Heights, the future of which depends on Israeli-Syrian peace and not on any US declaration, and the “economic workshop” in Bahrain at which the administration did not commit a single dollar of its own for the 179 initiatives it presented for the benefit of the Palestinians. The only significant act that future US presidents would be unable to reverse and the implementation of which would depend solely on the United States would be the signing of a defense treaty with Israel by the world’s only superpower.

As of this writing, neither side has denied Caspit’s report. If the two countries are indeed considering such a dramatic move, and even if it stems from Trump’s efforts to save Netanyahu from an election defeat on Sept. 17, I suggest welcoming and encouraging it. I am greatly disturbed by Trump’s term and the way he is running America, as well as by the childish pronouncements and eccentric character of a man who presumes to lead the free world. However, if he were willing to undertake such a move with his penchant for cutting Gordian ties with the swing of a sword, I would salute him.