President Joe Biden’s last address to the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York on Tuesday was glaringly hypocritical, evasive and vapid – in short, supremely predictive.
This was in addition to and following the full use of its veto power several times over the last few months at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) regarding pressing matters relating to the ceasefire in Gaza, criminal proceedings for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and much more.
For the record, veto power is the power of the five permanent members of the UNSC (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) to veto any decision – that the US has misused massively in order to shield Israel from repercussions of war crimes.
Of the 85 times the US has used its veto power over the years, 47 times have been to protect Israel.
Most glaringly, it was used to block a recommendation for full United Nations membership for Palestine and the recent resolution earlier this month that demanded an end to Israel’s illegal occupation of “occupied Palestinian Territory” within a year. The nonbinding measure passed a 124-14 vote with 43 countries abstaining.
No major Western country except Tel Aviv’s closest ally – the US – voted against the resolution that would have isolated Israel days before world leaders were to gather for the annual UN gathering in New York.
Biden will be remembered for being played magnificently by a dangerous and unhinged Netanyahu, who, while embracing his old friend Biden, struck a match off his back and lit the entire Middle East on fire
During his address, Biden offered fine rhetoric, but little in terms of policy and action – much like the past 11 months.
“As we look ahead, we must also address the rise of violence against innocent Palestinians on the West Bank and set the conditions for a better future, including a two-state solution, where the world - where Israel enjoys security and peace and full recognition and normalized relations with all its neighbors, where Palestinians live in security, dignity, and self-determination in a state of their own,” Biden stated to applause.
As much as Biden would have liked his last address to be a swan song for his foreign policy arc during his time in office, the reality is the absolute antithesis.
“Even with the situation escalating, a diplomatic solution is still possible…” he added.
As he spoke, Israel had killed another 558 people in Lebanon, expanding its war on Hezbollah and driving away nearly half a million from their homes.
This is in addition to the over 41,000 already killed , including women and children, in Gaza.
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As the US continues to “work tirelessly” towards a cease-fire and hostage release deal, last week The Wall Street Journal quoted senior U.S. officials who privately acknowledged that they don’t expect Israel and Hamas to reach an agreement before the end of Biden’s term.
No mention during his remarks were the limitations of his office, a change in course on US foreign policy when it comes to Israel, no arms embargo, no actionable steps towards a constructive and lasting peace in the Middle East. Nothing.
Biden had every opportunity to use this platform and his last few months in office to effect lasting change. He could have made a charter for peace in the Middle East his capstone and legacy.
He was in a unique position to establish a lasting ceasefire and a roadmap to a two-state solution — where no other US president in history, has come close.
Had he succeeded, it would have been the biggest strategic realignment in the region since the 1979 Camp David treaty during Democratic president Jimmy Carter’s presidency.
But for that to be successful, he would have had to withdraw the multiple vetoes at the UNSC on important resolutions, toe a harder line with Israel, and acknowledge that Netanyahu has been stringing him along by agreeing to a demilitarised Gaza in the future, while doing everything possible to permanently prevent any form of Palestinian statehood.
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Such actions don’t sound too difficult and they are certainly not without precedent.
Former Republican president Ronald Reagan wasn’t afraid to use leverage to hold Israel accountable for its actions, allowing 21 UN resolutions that directly or indirectly condemned Israeli behavior.
In 1981, Reagan suspended the delivery of advanced F-16 fighter jets to Israel, following a surprise raid on the Iraqi nuclear reactor at Osirak.
In 1982, when Israeli forces advanced beyond southern Lebanon and began shelling the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) in Beirut, Reagan responded with an angry call to then-Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, demanding a halt to the operation.
Biden, on the other hand, even with an hour’s notice, failed to intervene to stop Netanyahu from bombing and collapsing the 12-story building that housed the offices of Al Jazeera and the The Associated Press in Gaza in 2021.
He also failed to publicly condemn the attack, let alone challenge Israel’s assertion that the building sheltered Hamas military assets.
Former Democratic President Bill Clinton got as far as to bring Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) leader Yasser Arafat to sign a peace treaty – also known as The Oslo Accords – at the White House in 1993.
These were pivotal milestones in Israeli-Palestinian relations, aimed at propelling the peace process forward and providing for the expansion of Palestinian self-rule throughout most of the West Bank.
Biden, for half a century’s worth of foreign policy experience, could have redefined this process and charted an important arc for his own legacy.
He failed miserably.
He also failed to listen to his constituents, the Muslim-American voters, student protestors at elite liberal institutions across the US, members of ‘The Squad’, a group of nine Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives who have been consistently voicing their concerns over Israeli aggression in Gaza. Pro-Israel lobby groups have already spent millions trying to discredit and unseat them.
He could have given Netanyahu an ultimatum, focused on normalisation of relations with Saudi Arabia, and built on previous peace processes.
No, Biden will not be remembered for any such greatness.
Instead he will be remembered for a Middle East on fire, and a fickle ally by neighboring Arab nations.
Last week, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said the kingdom would not recognise Israel without a Palestinian state and strongly condemned the “crimes of the Israeli occupation.”
When Biden made his very first address to UNGA in 2021, he stated how he did not want to enter another Cold War, and yet here we are. ‘The U.S. shrugs as WWIII approaches’ cried a recent headline by CNN’s Michael Smerconish.
More importantly, he will be remembered for being played magnificently by a dangerous and unhinged Netanyahu, who, while embracing his old friend Biden, struck a match off his back and lit the entire Middle East on fire.
The article does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Business Recorder or its owners
The writer is Life & Style Editor at Business Recorder
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