The public spat between Biden and Netanyahu shouldn’t be seen as an indication of a broader shift in the alliance, according to one analyst.
The Biden administration signaled passivity, but not support towards a proposed ceasefire in Gaza during a vote on the matter at the United Nations on Monday. The move made headlines as the United States’ abstention marked a shift from the country’s previous three vetoes of similar Security Council resolutions.But analyst Mark Sleboda warns of reading too far into the incident, claiming the current rift in US-Israel relations is more of a matter of animosity between the countries’ leaders than a genuine change in their military relationship.“Everything we’ve heard in the Western press is that Biden personally has problems with Netanyahu,” added Sleboda. “It seems [to be] not so much what he’s doing, but the way he’s going about it and his complete lack of political damage control which is making Joe Biden’s life and his reelection more difficult.”The analyst said a halt in US lethal aid flowing to Israel would be evidence of a genuine shift in relations between the two longtime allies.
