Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi met his Brazilian counterpart, Ernesto Araujo, in Jerusalem on Sunday and thanked his country for its "steadfast position against the International Criminal Court's decision to launch a [war crimes] probe" against the Jewish state.

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"It is a decision that harms international law and distances the possibility to advance negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians," Ashkenazi stressed at the meeting.

Last week, ICC senior prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced she had opened a formal probe into alleged war crimes in the Palestinian territories, consisting of the West Bank (Judea and Samaria), east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.

The decision resulted in a considerable backlash in Israel, with officials urging allies around the world to exert diplomatic pressure against the ICC.

Araujo and Ashkenazi further discussed Middle East developments, with the Israeli minister citing landmark changes that have taken place after four Arab nations – the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco – signed the Abraham Accords.

Ashkenazi warned of increasing Iranian efforts in recent days to destabilize the region.

"We clearly identify Iran's fingerprints in recent attempts to harm Israeli targets around the world. The international community must ensure that Iran ceases its efforts to reach the threshold for military nuclear technology and fulfills its commitments to the last detail," he asserted.

The delegation, which also included chair of the Congress Foreign Affairs Committee Eduardo Bolsonaro – the son of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro – was allowed into the country without having to undergo quarantine, despite a general ban on foreign citizens entering Israel and the threat of a Brazilian COVID-19 variant.

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After meeting Araujo, Ashkenazi said the sides were "working together to expand cooperation between our countries in the fight against the virus." He said Israel "will assist Brazil in every way possible and will also explore ways to deepen research and development on medicines and other solutions to deal with the virus."

This article was first published by i24NEWS.

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Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi is leaving Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz's Blue and White party, he announced Wednesday afternoon.

"I have decided not to continue with Blue and White and I am taking some time to consider what to do next. I thank Benny for his partnership and wish him success. I will continue to serve in my role as long as I am needed," Ashkenazi wrote.

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However, Ashkenazi is expected to remain in his post as foreign minister, at least until the next government is formed.

Ashkenazi had already informed Gantz that he was planning on leaving the party.

As of Wednesday, the prevailing belief was that Ashkenazi would leave politics entirely, although some thought there was still a chance he might join a different party.

In his notification, Ashkenazi wrote, "Blue and White presented an alternative to Benjamin Netanyahu and we decided to exert influence from inside [the government], out of a sense of national responsibility. That is how I operated my entire life, and how I will continue to act. Any place there was a danger to the country or to me – I opted to take on the risk. Changing the conversation from annexing territories is what opened the window of opportunity for the peace agreements, and together we prevented any attempt at political or legal adventures."

Gantz said in response to Ashkenazi's message: "I respect my friend Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi's decision and thank him from the depths of my heart for his partnership these past two years, for the sake of the country.

"Gabi and I have known each other for years and I appreciate him highly. Gabi restored the Foreign Ministry to its natural place as a leading, influential ministry after years in which it was neglected, and did a great deal to stop the annexation plan and promote normalization in the region, and I'm sure he will continue to contribute a great deal to Israeli life," Gantz said.

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It seems that in modern-day Israel no former general can make a successful transition into politics. When one reads about the latest failures of Blue and White, which until recently was led by three former chiefs of staff, one cannot help but wonder: is it that these generals specifically have lost their public and political support or are we witnessing the general decline of the Israeli security ethos?

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Until recently, Blue and White claimed to be the alternative to the disintegrating government. Now, the party is on the verge of collapse. It is very unlikely that party leader Benny Gantz and his No. 2, Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, will stay in politics for very long. The imploding of Blue and White reflects the leadership difficulties of the two, not to mention their colossal political failure.

But Gantz and Ashkenazi are not the only former military chiefs who failed to establish political power. Their predecessors include failed Kadima chairman Shaul Mofaz, his successor in the army, MK Moshe Ya'alon, who has failed to establish an influential political platform since resigning from the Likud, and former Chief of Staff Dan Halutz who was a member of Kadima, but most likely no one even remembers that.

Since Ehud Barak, who became prime minister six years after retiring from the IDF, no chief of staff has even come close to becoming prime minister. And even Barak held office for less than two years before being replaced by Ariel Sharon.

The historical perspective makes one understand that Gantz and Ashkenazi never stood a chance to begin with. History show us time and time again: not only do chiefs of staff fail to reach a position of power, they leave the political arena disgraced.

There might be a few reasons for this. If you ask someone from the military, they will probably tell you that military officials are honest people and they are not fit for the dirty world of politics. There might be some truth to that, but why is it that again and again they leave the field of politics in humiliation?

The IDF possesses the highest level of public trust, or so it seems on paper. Many say they respect each unit individually, but the institution in its entirety is quite mediocre. In any case, the army has been the target of more and more public criticism in the last few decades.

The IDF has never been perfect, and perhaps it has been even less effective and efficient in the last few decades. Why is it that Yitzhak Rabin and Rafael Eitan succeeded in going from military leaders to successful politicians? If they did it, why did Gantz and Ashkenazi fail? Were the chiefs of staff more successful back then and therefore their path in the world of politics was more comfortable? Or vice versa?

Some say that Israel has become disenchanted with the IDF, that military officials are no longer considered as brilliant as they used to be, and therefore are less valued by the public and are less influential.

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The disenchantment of the Israeli public and the questionable political capability of the chiefs of staff have led to a decline in the added value former generals bring to politics, spelling big-time defeat.

How can Israeli society, which still defines itself as militaristic, oust its chiefs of staff in such disgrace? After all, these generals gave decades of their lives to the state and have literally put their lives on the line for our security.

The IDF is no longer the people's army. All that remains is to ask: is the generation declining or is it the quality of the generals that is diminishing?

Col. Ronen Itsik (Res.) is a researcher and lecturer in political science and the author of "Behind The Armor: The story of an Israeli soldier," describing military service and combat situations against terrorist organizations.

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi welcomed Bahraini Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism Zayed bin Rashid Al-Zayani to Jerusalem on Wednesday

The leaders announced a number of bilateral agreements that will help bolster tourism, sports, culture, science and technology, and the economies of both nations.

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"These are wonderful days," Netanyahu declared. "We signed several agreements and more are in the works, but more importantly is the understanding that this is real peace between our peoples, which will lead to economic benefits that cannot even have been imagined just a few months ago."

Ashkenazi said, "As ministers, we are committed to bringing about the implementation of the agreements, as soon as possible, so that the peoples of our countries can soon enjoy the fruits of the peace for which we have dreamed."

Al Zayani arrived in Israel on Tuesday, heading a 40-person business and trade delegation that will be in the country until Thursday.

"Such a delegation symbolizes first and foremost the normalization of relations between the countries and our common desire to promote change in the Middle East," Ashkenazi added.

Al Zayani said he was "convinced" that the implementation of the Abraham Accords will have a lasting impact on both Israeli and Bahraini citizens, adding he hoped they could serve as a guide for other countries to follow in the region.

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"We are eager to launch direct flights between Bahrain and Tel Aviv," the Bahraini minister said after his meeting with Ashkenazi. "With us today in the delegation is a significant team presence from Gulf Air, our national carrier, to make sure that gets established and up and running as soon as possible."

He added: "We have a diversified economy and we feel that there are similarities between our economies. We will be able to cooperate in order to give a better life to our citizens," he concluded.

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German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas invited Ashkenazi to Thursday's conference of EU foreign ministers.

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Shortly after his arrival, Ashkenazi met with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, thanking him for his country's stance in designating the entirety of Hezbollah - both the political and military wing - as a terrorist organization.

In addition to updating the president on the recent deal to normalize ties between the United Arab Emirates and Israel, Ashkenazi also implored Germany's head of state to prevent the United Nations' arms embargo against Iran from running down in October.

Ashkenazi spoke at a ceremony at "Platform 17 in Berlin's Grunewald Station, where there is a memorial marking Nazi Germany's deportation of more than 55,000 Jews. He was joined by Israeli Ambassador to Germany Jeremy Issacharoff, Foreign Ministry Director-General Alon Ushpiz, and representatives of the German Jewish community," according to The Jerusalem Post.

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"I stand here as the foreign minister of the government of Israel and the former IDF chief of staff," Ashkenazi said. "Jews will never again be sent to their death because they are Jewish. Never again."

The foreign minister will visit Wannsee, the villa in a Berlin suburb where the architects of the Nazi "Final solution" met - under the direction of Reinhardt Heydrich - to iron out details for the attempted slaughter of Europe's 11 million Jews.

This article was originally published by i24NEWS. 

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With the specter of another election still on the table, the two concealed, similar to the other senior members of their party, the degree to which their positions on the matter diverged from their partners on the right. They claimed, after all, that they were centrists, and Gantz even declared in Washington, where he met with US President Donald Trump, that he was adopting the plan. Just two months later, sitting around the coalition negotiation table, Netanyahu understood he wouldn't get anywhere with these two men.

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But Netanyahu is determined. The sovereignty issue has become his life's mission. He became Israel's longest-serving prime minister, and now he is fighting for the legacy he leaves behind; the main achievement for which he is recognized. Even in the midst of the coalition talks, Netanyahu was able to compel Gantz to accept the clause stipulating that unlike the other joint decisions and rules, the sovereignty issue could not be vetoed.

Although Netanyahu has an assured majority in the government even without Blue and White's votes, other unforeseeable factors could derail the initiative: specifically, the Americans, but not strictly. Last week, Interior Minister Aryeh Deri intimated that such a move needs to have the support of Gantz, Ashkenazi, and their fellow party members.  In the meantime, Deri hasn't made this a condition for his support, but who knows what tomorrow will bring.

Without Deri, and essentially without the support of the entire right-wing bloc in the government, Netanyahu lacks the necessary majority to pass the plan. And if this isn't enough; he also needs the vote of Communication Minister Yoaz Hendel (Derech Eretz). From Netanyahu's perspective, this is an intolerable situation. The last thing he expected was that his flagship diplomatic initiative, the one that would etch his name in the history books, would hang by a thread at the mercy of a former aide (Hendel) who parted ways on bad terms.

In recent days, Netanyahu has met with Gantz several times to resolve the imbroglio. Gantz, who is trying to notch a political win, tied the sovereignty issue to the national budget. In those talks, and in messages their offices have exchanged, Netanyahu made it clear to his coalition partner that without sovereignty there can be no unity government. It's either sovereignty or elections, no more middle ground. This week, therefore, is critical, not just for the settlement enterprise but for the political system. If the Americans demand Blue and White's cooperation as a condition for green-lighting the initiative, the government will instantly become a pressure cooker.

If Gantz is worried about a one-year national budget because it would grant Netanyahu another opportunity in March to call for early elections without having to surrender leadership of the transition government, without sovereignty these concerns will most likely be for naught. If Netanyahu's threats are to be taken seriously, this government won't even make it that far.

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The visit to Jerusalem – Heiko Maas' first trip outside of Europe since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic – comes just weeks before Israel intends to extend sovereignty over Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, in line with President Donald Trump's vision for peace plan.

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The annexation plan has come under harsh criticism from some of Israel's closest allies, including Germany, who say that unilaterally redrawing the Mideast map would destroy any lingering hopes for establishing a Palestinian state and reaching a two-state peace agreement.

Speaking at a news conference, Maas said that Germany and the European Union were seeking clarity about the Israeli plan, but he made it clear that Europe considers the sovereignty move incompatible with international law.

"I didn't set up any price tags. We are also in agreement in the EU that we seek dialogue with all parties to this process. I am here in Israel to receive information about the plans of the new government," Maas said, standing alongside Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi. "We still believe the negotiated two-state solution is the right way, that annexation will not make this solution more probable."

Germany, already a key European power broker, will be taking over both the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union and the presidency of the UN Security Council on July 1, the same day Israel says it may begin unfurling its plan.

"I made clear that the German government and the colleagues in the EU are very worried that annexation can lead to the two-state solution no longer being viable and that we are on the wrong path. It's the time of diplomacy and dialogue," Maas said.

Ashkenazi, a former military chief who recently assumed his post with the establishment of a new Israeli government, sought to reassure his guest.

"The plan will be pursued responsibly," he said. "We intend to do it in a dialogue with our neighbors."

Maas is also scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Benny Gantz. Later in the day, he will travel to neighboring Jordan to meet his counterpart there and hold a conference call with Palestinian leaders.

The US plan envisions leaving about one-third of Judea and Samaria under permanent Israeli control while granting the Palestinians expanded autonomy in the remainder of the territory if they meet certain criteria and no longer pose a threat to Israel.

The proposal also faces opposition within Israel, where many fear that the sovereignty move is a step that could lead to the creation of a single binational state with the Palestinians. Even some hardline settlers oppose the plan, saying it doesn't go far enough.

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"My hope would be that Ashkenazi as foreign minister and Gantz as defense minister – in what will be internal deliberations – given their deep experience in the [Israel Defense Forces] and given the security consequences of an abrupt move, would caution [Netanyahu] against some significant step like this," said Coons, a member of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee. 

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He commented on the issue during a webinar hosted by the Jewish Democratic Council of America that also included former US Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken, who is currently serving as senior foreign-policy adviser for presumptive 2020 Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

Regarding how a Biden administration might react to such a move, Coons said: "It's hard to exactly prejudge the circumstances on the ground as of January of next year, and we only have one president at a time."

Blinken said he is "not going to prejudge what we might do or not do in the context of a Biden administration," as "lots of things can happen between now and then."

Nonetheless, he reiterated the fact that the former vice president "has been literally opposed to annexation" and has been "on the record several times [that] unilateral steps taken by either side that makes the prospect of a negotiated to a two-state outcome less likely is something he opposes, and that includes annexation."

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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Previous reports have said that Ya'alon, who holds the third place on the Blue and White list, was Gantz's preferred candidate for defense minister, a role in which he has already served.

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The agreement between the parties that form Blue and White – Yesh Atid, Telem, and the Israel Resilience Party – does not specifically mention which candidates will be assigned to which cabinet positions if the party wins the election.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to respond to the report, asking on Twitter, "What ministerial portfolios is Benny Gantz promising [Joint Arab List MKs] Ayman Odeh and Ahmad Tibi?"

Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz responded to Gantz's remarks, saying, "After they couldn't convince Lapid to forgo the rotation, Blue and White is trying a new spin: Ashkenazi as defense minister in a shadow cabinet."

Gantz tweeted in response: "There are two areas of utmost importance to Israel – defense and education. Therefore, I've decided to pick Gabi Ashkenazi, a former chief of staff and the person who rehabilitated the IDF after the Second Lebanon War, to the role of defense minister.

"He knew how to restore deterrence and a sense of security to Israelis in the south, in the western Negev, and in the north, as well as everywhere else in Israel. I want former Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon to serve as education minister to heal the rifts in Israeli society," Gantz said.

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