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EX-US GENERAL: WE PAY A PRICE FOR BACKING ISRAEL
Slamming settlements, James Mattis, former commander of CentCom,
tells crowd in Aspen that moderate Arabs are forced to hide support
for America
By Lazar Berman
July 26, 2013 "Information Clearing House - "Times Of Israel" -
Retired US Marine Corps General James Mattis recently said that
America pays a price for its perceived bias in support of Israel.
"I paid a military security price every day as the commander of CentCom
because the Americans were seen as biased in support of Israel,
and that moderates all the moderate Arabs who want to be with us,
because they can't come out publicly in support of people who don't
show respect for the Arab Palestinians," he said Saturday at the
Aspen Security Forum in Colorado in response to a question about the
peace process
Mattis took over Central Command, whose area of responsibility includes
the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia, from David Petraeus
in 2010.
He called the current situation in Israel "unsustainable" and blamed
the settlements for harming prospects for peace. The chances for an
accord between Israel and the Palestinians, said Mattis, "are starting
to ebb because the settlements and where they're at are going to make
it impossible to maintain the two state solution."
Mattis then described a hypothetical in which 500 Jewish settlers
live among 10,000 Arabs, and the implications of where Israel draws
the border. He called it a choice between giving up the idea of a
Jewish state or becoming an apartheid state.
He then returned to the idea of the cost of lack of progress in peace
talks, arguing that it "shortstops a lot of support for us because all
politics are local... And I would just tell you that they can't come
out in support of us if we don't see some progress where Secretary
[of State John] Kerry is wisely focused like a laser beam right now."
Mattis was effusive throughout the conversation in his praise for Kerry
and his current effort to kick-start the long-dormant peace process.
Mattis also touched on Syria, Egypt, Iraq, and his decades of service
in the Marine Corps. He estimated that Iran is about a year off from
a nuclear weapon and expressed pessimism regarding the potential
efficacy of a military strike, but said he was certain Israel would
not hesitate to attack if it felt Iran had crossed its red lines.
Mattis's predecessor reportedly expressed similar sentiments in 2010.
Petraeus reportedly dispatched a team of senior officers under his
command to brief Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The 45-minute powerpoint
presentation shown to Mullen argued that Israeli intransigence was
harming US interests in the region and harming American credibility
among Arab leaders.
In a prepared statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee in
March 2010, Petraeus said that the "conflict foments anti-American
sentiment, due to a perception of US favoritism for Israel. Arab
anger over the Palestinian question limits the strength and depth
of US partnerships with governments and peoples in the AOR [area of
responsibility] and weakens the legitimacy of moderate regimes in the
Arab world. Meanwhile, al-Qaeda and other militant groups exploit that
anger to mobilize support. The conflict also gives Iran influence in
the Arab world through its clients, Lebanese Hezbollah and Hamas."
Petraeus walked the statements back soon after.
© 2013 The Times of Israel, All rights reserved
Slamming settlements, James Mattis, former commander of CentCom,
tells crowd in Aspen that moderate Arabs are forced to hide support
for America
By Lazar Berman
July 26, 2013 "Information Clearing House - "Times Of Israel" -
Retired US Marine Corps General James Mattis recently said that
America pays a price for its perceived bias in support of Israel.
"I paid a military security price every day as the commander of CentCom
because the Americans were seen as biased in support of Israel,
and that moderates all the moderate Arabs who want to be with us,
because they can't come out publicly in support of people who don't
show respect for the Arab Palestinians," he said Saturday at the
Aspen Security Forum in Colorado in response to a question about the
peace process
Mattis took over Central Command, whose area of responsibility includes
the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia, from David Petraeus
in 2010.
He called the current situation in Israel "unsustainable" and blamed
the settlements for harming prospects for peace. The chances for an
accord between Israel and the Palestinians, said Mattis, "are starting
to ebb because the settlements and where they're at are going to make
it impossible to maintain the two state solution."
Mattis then described a hypothetical in which 500 Jewish settlers
live among 10,000 Arabs, and the implications of where Israel draws
the border. He called it a choice between giving up the idea of a
Jewish state or becoming an apartheid state.
He then returned to the idea of the cost of lack of progress in peace
talks, arguing that it "shortstops a lot of support for us because all
politics are local... And I would just tell you that they can't come
out in support of us if we don't see some progress where Secretary
[of State John] Kerry is wisely focused like a laser beam right now."
Mattis was effusive throughout the conversation in his praise for Kerry
and his current effort to kick-start the long-dormant peace process.
Mattis also touched on Syria, Egypt, Iraq, and his decades of service
in the Marine Corps. He estimated that Iran is about a year off from
a nuclear weapon and expressed pessimism regarding the potential
efficacy of a military strike, but said he was certain Israel would
not hesitate to attack if it felt Iran had crossed its red lines.
Mattis's predecessor reportedly expressed similar sentiments in 2010.
Petraeus reportedly dispatched a team of senior officers under his
command to brief Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The 45-minute powerpoint
presentation shown to Mullen argued that Israeli intransigence was
harming US interests in the region and harming American credibility
among Arab leaders.
In a prepared statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee in
March 2010, Petraeus said that the "conflict foments anti-American
sentiment, due to a perception of US favoritism for Israel. Arab
anger over the Palestinian question limits the strength and depth
of US partnerships with governments and peoples in the AOR [area of
responsibility] and weakens the legitimacy of moderate regimes in the
Arab world. Meanwhile, al-Qaeda and other militant groups exploit that
anger to mobilize support. The conflict also gives Iran influence in
the Arab world through its clients, Lebanese Hezbollah and Hamas."
Petraeus walked the statements back soon after.
© 2013 The Times of Israel, All rights reserved