Interest vs Values Israel Must Pick Values
In August 1933, the Zionist movement in Germany signed an agreement with the Nazi government called the Haavara Agreement. Under its terms, Jews fleeing Nazi Germany could sell their property in return for the purchase of goods that would be exported to Palestine. The accord facilitated the departure of over 150,000 German Jews who escaped Nazism and survived the war, while at the same time strengthening the economy of Jewish Palestine. On the other hand, the Haavara Agreement constituted a clear violation of the worldwide boycott against Nazis Germany, supported by Jews worldwide.
I think about the Haavara agreement, as I try to understand the actions of the Israeli government pertaining to Putin's War on Ukraine. Not since the end of the Nazi regime has there been a more brutal, senseless, baseless war in Europe than the War launched by Russia against Ukraine. There is no question of who is right, who is the victim, who is the evil aggressor. Furthermore, all of Israel's traditional allies are standing against Russia, led by Israel's strongest supporter — the United States. Yet despite these factors, the Israeli government has attempted to maneuver between the raindrops and refrain from taking actions that would anger the Russians (e.g., imposing sanctions); while at the same time, standing together with the US on UN votes.
How can Israel's failure to make the clear moral choice be explained? How are we to understand the prevarications in Jerusalem, which simultaneously assert it stands with the Ukrainian people, but refuses to publicly condemn Putin?
The answer is multi-layered, but comes down to a simple equation of values vs. interests. Israel, a small country previously and continually threatened by larger neighbors; a country firmly anchored in the democratic west, identifies with Ukraine. Therefore, unequivocal support of Ukraine, including providing it with lethal weapons to defend itself against an aggressor, would align with Israel's values. However, the Israeli government believes the nation's interest is at least partly at odds with its values. What are those interests? First, and foremost, continued coordination with the Russians regarding the air over Syria. That coordination has allowed Israel to operate in the air over Syria, without opposition, attacking Iranian targets — in what Israel describes as “the war between the wars”.
The second interest Israel holds is the well-being of the Jews of Russia. A sizeable Jewish community still exists in Russia. There is concern that if Israel's relations with Russia deteriorate further, the Jews who live there would be trapped, with no way to get out. Thus, the Israeli government has insisted that El Al continue flight service to Russia.
Finally, Israel has a complicated relationship with the many Jewish Russian oligarchs, the same people whom the majority of Western countries have sanctioned. Over the years, many of those same oligarchs have obtained Israeli citizenship. Thus, as far as Israel is concerned, they are Israelis. Israel does not have any law which would allow it to confiscate the property of its citizens, just because foreign nations have sanctioned them.
So how does one resolve Israel’s apparent clash between values and interests? The Israeli government has decided not to resolve between the two, and instead, to attempt to balance them. That approach has the advantage of providing the Israeli Prime Minister with the ability to speak to both sides, and try — even if he is not likely to be successful — to facilitate dialogue between Putin and Zelensky. Second, flights between Israel and Moscow continue, therefore, Jews who wish to move to Israel seem able to do so. Third, and most important to many, Russia continues not to interfere with Israeli actions over Syrian skies.
Ultimately, if this war continues, and as the Russians resort to ever more brutal methods to try to conquer Ukraine, Israel's position will become untenable. Israel cannot be seen as the only western democracy that failed to side with Ukraine. Carrying on “business as usual,” with a man who is clearly becoming a war criminal is not a real option. It might have been ok for Prime Minister Bennett to go to Moscow and meet Putin in the early days of the war, but as the brutality of Putin’s assault on Ukraine unfolds hourly on screens throughout the world, future such meetings become indefensible.
The single biggest reason for Israel's fear of angering Putin is based on an erroneous premise. The concern is that the Russians in Syria could close Syrian air space to Israel. However, both past history, and recent history, make a mockery of that concern. Every time the Israeli Air Force encountered the Soviet (now Russian Air Force), the rendezvous did not end well for the Soviets. In the one dogfight between Israelis and Soviet Planes during Israel’s War of Attrition, the IAF shot down 5 Soviets planes, and did not suffer a single loss on the Israeli side.
In 1981, during the first Lebanon War, the IAF destroyed the carefully designed Soviet missile system in Syria, and suffered no casualties. Since then, Israeli technology, training, and tactics have continued to advance rapidly, while, as we have seen in Ukraine, the Russian army seems little more than the Soviet Army with a new coat of paint.
The bottom line is that while there is always risk in pursuit of the unknown, it is implausible that the Russians would try to interfere with Israeli activities in Syria. An Air Force that cannot dominate the skies over Ukraine after two weeks of battle is not about to take on the IAF.
With the war now in its third week, and no clear end in sight, Israel's position on the tightrope is becoming inexcusable; Israel's traditional allies, including the United States, have been patient, but are now beginning to press Israel — who will soon be forced to pick values over some of its perceived interests. If the war goes on, Israel will not be able to continue to operate El Al flights to Moscow, or protect the financial interests of Jewish oligarchs indefinitely. Israel will have no choice, but fully coordinate its actions with the rest of Western Democracies. Interest change, values are eternal — It is time for Israel to align its actions with its values.
