Jerusalem is getting ready to give US President Joe Biden a good visit. He really needs it. Israel, for all of its problems and grumblings, is a refreshment stop, not just on the way to the dark palaces of Riyadh and Jeddah, but as a respite from the very grim reality in America, from his perspective.
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According to the latest poll, published in the New York Times this week, the president's approval rating is at an alarming low. Voters nationwide give him a paltry 33% job-approval rating, far below the red line. More than two-thirds of the people questioned said the country was heading in the wrong direction. Furthermore, 64% of Democratic voters said they would prefer someone new to lead the party.
The president could have advanced peace on this visit had he not looked for symbolic, empty gestures on behalf of the Palestinians instead. It would have sufficed had he made just one demand of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas – stop paying terrorists, and their families, for murdering Jews, if you want to continue receiving American aid.
On the Palestinian front, however, Biden is content with paying lip service on his way to tackling America's energy problems. Similar to other serious issues, this one wasn't caused by the war in Ukraine, but by wrong decisions that were made upon taking office. On one hand, Biden is sending his country's emergency oil reserves across the globe to meet consumer demands and slightly reduce prices. On the other hand, he is going to Canossa to beg the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, to significantly increase his country's oil production to reduce gas prices around the world.
In the 1980s, Saudi Arabia played a decisive role in collapsing the former Soviet Union by toppling oil prices. Today, the Saudis are standing on the sidelines.
Incorrect policy
The Arab powers have lost faith in the United States, and the US has lost faith in itself. Exactly one year ago, the terrible American collapse in Afghanistan began. At the same time, the US was reaping the fruits of its involvement in Israel's politics. The result – a weak, unstable government came to power, instead of the only leader who had gained the trust of the Arabs – Benjamin Netanyahu.
A world in which Vladimir Putin most prominently dictates the global agenda is a scary one. Biden bears responsibility for the lack of a roadmap for ending the war in Ukraine and reaching a comprehensive settlement.
There's no question that Biden's very visit to Israel contributes to narrowing the gaps between the two countries. The projection of American-Israeli solidarity is a force multiplier in terms of deterrence.
Similar to energy, Israel's and America's shameful position in relation to the Iranian nuclear issue was also caused by incorrect policy, which mostly consisted of doing the opposite of the previous president, Donald Trump. Even pundits with Democratic leanings tried convincing Biden that the reality in the Middle East had changed and that on the Iran issue, Trump and Netanyahu's policy was astute. The administration's mad dash to a new nuclear deal only emboldened the Iranians to accelerate their uranium enrichment efforts.
To get what he wants from the Saudis on the oil front, Biden will have to make a very concrete concession, because from the Arab perspective, when it comes to America, words are now cheap.
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