The 'crisis' is a wish, not reality

The Israeli media spent considerable time this weekend dwelling on the "unprecedented crisis" between Washington and Jerusalem following the delay of a missile shipment during Operation Protective Edge, and "innocently" sought to understand who was responsible for it.

Obviously, politicians also took advantage of the "crisis" and joined the party. They waxed about the strategic importance of the ties between the two countries (thanks the reminder), and in doing so only fanned the flames. But hang on a second, what crisis are we talking about, exactly?

You don't have to be an historian or an expert in Israel-U.S. relations to know that there have already been crises -- even major ones -- between the two countries in the time of presidents Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush the father and Bush the son, and Clinton between them -- nearly all of them. And yes, there are also disagreements between the U.S. administration and Jerusalem in the time of President Barack Obama. A disagreement between friends.

Yes, there probably was a glitch in how the missiles were ordered, and the administration might not like things being done through the Pentagon, certainly not in times of armed conflict. But the fact that mere hours after the story was reported in the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. State Department hurried to explain that "there is no change in American policy, and the U.S. is committed to Israel's security," just proves that the analysts who are talking about a near "Apocalypse Now" between the U.S. and Israel are basing their words on someone's agenda, not reality.

Both Jerusalem and Washington tried to clarify there is no diplomatic crisis. "These aren't unusual steps, and nothing is being held up," the deputy spokeswoman for the State Department said.

True, the two capitals have different worldviews these days (and that's legitimate), but Washington and Jerusalem are fighting nearly identical battles against terrorist organizations.

About the talking heads: We heard many explaining over the weekend that the U.S. is a superpower and therefore Israel should conduct itself accordingly.

Does this mean that if the Americans err in their assessments -- as they did in Egypt, Syria, Libya, Iraq, and of course Turkey and Qatar recently -- Israel should have to nod its head in agreement-

טעינו? נתקן! אם מצאתם טעות בכתבה, נשמח שתשתפו אותנו