Israel gets a show of support from friends in high places

A delegation of former top leaders and officials arrived in Israel this week to show support for Israel's diplomatic position and express their opposition to the Palestinian intention for unilateral declaration of statehood at the United Nations General Assembly in September.

Former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar is leading the delegation. He is joined by former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. John Bolton and former First Minister of Northern Ireland Lord William David Trimble.

Trimble shared the Nobel Peace Prize with John Hume in 1998 and was appointed by the Israeli government as a foreign observer for the Turkel Commission investigating the 2010 Gaza flotilla incident. The delegation members represent the Friends of Israel Initiative, an international organization established to defend Israel's right to exist, that also includes former Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo and former Czechoslovakian President Vaclav Havel.

Delegation members will meet with President Shimon Peres on Wednesday. During their visit, they will also meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, opposition leader MK Tzipi Livni and other ministers and government officials.

One of the goals of the Friends of Israel Initiative is to provide a mechanism based on personal associations to influence and strengthen other world leaders that support Israel, but struggle with anti-Israel sentiment within their own governments.

The Friends visiting Israel, along with the popular American newscaster Glenn Beck, who also visited Israel this week, are the first in a line of international heavyweights intending to visit Israel before the expected U.N. vote on a Palestinian state.