The Israeli government is facing a choice between realizing a dream or missing out on it, which will be something we regret for generations to come. The idea of applying sovereignty in the Jordan Valley and in 30% of Judea and Samaria is a historic opportunity that has presented itself at this time, perhaps never to return again.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the alternative leader created following three election campaigns, Blue and White leader Benny Gantz, must present a united front on this issue. As the saying goes, it takes two to tango – and also to implement the "deal of the century."
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Failing to band together on the issue of sovereignty means only one thing – dissolving the unity government. Currently, Netanyahu and Gantz still have a say on the matter but sooner rather than later, this choice will fall to the Israeli public.
The distance between setting permanent borders and setting a date for the fourth elections is short. And if you believe the latest polls, Gantz's choice is quite clear: the Prime Minister's Office in 18 months – or the nearest unemployment office.
The "anti-annexation" campaign has many supporters in the international community. The United Nations, the European Union, liberal media, the Arab League, the Organization of African Unity – all will decry to high heaven the fact that Israel's borders will expand.
Under the auspices of the Israeli Left, the world has adopted a paradigm that states that only a diet that will keep Israel tiny and slim will lead to peace. The world has forgotten that this was the original plan devised by the UN, and even that met with a resounding and violent "NO!" by our neighbors. So it seems there is only one thing new under the sun: US President Donald Trump.
The "anti-annexation" campaign is also supported by influential Jew overseas, as well as by agenda-driven journalists and even retired defense officials seeking to remain relevant by toeing the Left's line.
The United Arab Emirates has never been as important as it has been this week, when its ambassador to Washington – an anonymous figure-turned-international diplomatic superstar – wrote an opinion piece in an Israeli daily in which he warned the Israeli public that any future normalization was contingent on the "annexation" plan.
The Left is what the Left does
The Israeli Left's panic whenever someone in the international community rebuked the government makes one long for the days of Israel's first Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion, who taught us that "our future does not depend on what the Gentiles [my apologies to the UAE, B.B.] will say, but on what the Jews will do."
Everyone can breathe easy: normalizing ties with Israel is just as important to the moderate Arab world as it is to Israeli foreign correspondents.
The Palestinian ire over the fact that the ambassador had the gall to address the Israeli public directly has only rendered them even more ludicrous, especially after UAE Foreign Minister Anwar Gargash told American Jews that his country would be happy to continue its cooperation with Israel "despite any disagreements."
The Left, as usual, does what it does best whenever Israel faces the realization of one of its own security or political interest, namely it embarks on a campaign of intimidation and threats, complete with statements by diplomats, political has-beens and other disciples of the 1993 Oslo Accords. A sovereignty bid, they warn, will get us nothing but terrorism, international sanctions, and – the new threat – the cold shoulder from the Persian Gulf States.
But we also remember that the threat of terrorism never stopped Oslo followers from calling for future concessions; that the "diplomatic tsunami" and international isolation they promised, turn out to be booming international relations – including after the US Embassy moved to Jerusalem – and that the budding normalization with Gulf states has been flourishing over the past decade. All of this is happening with the Right in power – and without Israel ceding an inch of land.
About 20 years ago, when I was a journalist in Paris and the Oslo Accords were still in vogue, a senior European diplomat told me that in the Middle East one must dictate agreements, otherwise, nothing gets done. Indeed, the Trump administration recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital, it recognizes Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights and even stated that the Israeli sovereignty in Judea and Samaria is legal. It is a pity that Trump's "deal of the century" was presented as a recommendation rather than a fact. Had this sympathetic president declared it as such, we would already have an eastern border.
Trump is currently facing different troubles that he did in January when he introduced his peace plan. Still, Trump remains one of the few voices in the international arena that stands by Israel fearlessly and unwaveringly.
Critics of the American president, especially in the Right, need therefore show more humility and far less audacity.
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The key point to keep in mind – and here we revisit the issue of prime minister-designate Benny Gantz – is that Trump can help promote sovereignty only for an Israeli government that is united on the issue. The tragedy is that in the meantime, the Knesset has replicated itself in the government, which now also consists of a collation and an opposition, locking horns.
How can Trump sell his plan in the world and support sovereignty when a would-be future Israeli prime minister opposes it? And let's be clear: not supporting the sovereignty bid means opposing it. If the Israeli government is unable to present a united front on the sovereignty issue the White House cannot lobby for it on the world stage.
We must also remember that Israel agreed to the US's peace plan while the Palestinians rejected it outright. The Palestinians have four years to change their minds, but if we fail to apply sovereignty at this time we will have much longer than four years to regret it. We have been warned.
