On Wednesday, a day before the 13th anniversary of 9/11, U.S. President Barack Obama announced he had a strategy for combating radical Islamic terrorism. Unlike that children's song, we won't see "the uniformed army go to war"; rather, we will see a made-in-America version of Israel's Gaza offensives in 2012 (Pillar of Defense) and 2014 (Protective Edge). The U.S. will launch airstrikes against the Islamic State group, which poses a threat to both Islam and humankind. Opposition Leader MK Isaac Herzog had a lucky break this week. He happened to be in Washington a day before Obama was to deliver his presidential address on the Islamic State. The officials he met promised that the U.S. would not relent in its efforts to stop Iran's nuclearization, despite its battle against the Islamic State. This, Herzog noted, would be complemented by a renewed American effort to tackle the Israeli-Palestinian conundrum. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has recently opined that Israel had no conflict with the Palestinians but with the Arab world. Washington is unlikely to accept that narrative. Lieberman may very well be correct in his analysis, but Washington does not hold that view. What does all this mean when it comes to Israel? Now that Obama has made the right decision by declaring war on the Islamic State, and now that Israel has emerged victorious from another round of fighting with Hamas -- rejecting even the slightest of its demands -- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should go to Washington for talks. Washington is bent on resuming the peace process and reaching a two-state solution in our neck of the woods. Now that the administration has gone through a reality check on Islamic terrorism, Israel can once again coordinate its moves with its big ally. That said, there is no such thing as a free lunch. Netanyahu will have to make some painful concessions. The U.S. has been a trusted partner, despite the varying degrees of sympathy toward Israel over the years. The White House has kept its part in the special relationship, whether it was the Likud in power or one of its rivals. America's war on Islamic terrorism may present Israel with an opportunity to patch things up.
