NPR just aired an exchange between Robert Siegel and the Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg over the fact that Wikileaks cables show that Arab governments want to stop Iran’s nuclear weapons program.
I don’t doubt the cables; though when Goldberg says that the Arab governments perceive an “existential threat” from Iran, just as Israel does, I don’t trust him a lick. Goldberg told us that Saddam had links to Al Qaeda and helped get us into the Iraq debacle.
The answer to this hasbara (and it is hasbara: efforts by the Israel lobby, including former IDF soldier Goldberg, to gain cover for a militarist agenda; note that AIPAC is tweeting the news) is, If you are going to quote Arab government opinions, how can you be so selective?
Arab governments want to end the oppression of Palestinians so that the region can escape this neverending conflict. And the centrality of the Palestinian issue to Arab governments is underlined by two of the Wikileaks cables. In fairness, NPR should be doing reports on these cables:
1. Feb. 14, 2010 meeting of John Kerry and the Amir of Qatar.
The Amir advised the U.S. to continue trying to open a dialogue with the Iranian leadership. He also told Senator Kerry the U.S. needs to tell the Israelis they are causing the U.S. to lose the hearts and minds of Muslims. There was a time, such as during the Suez Canal crisis, when the Arabs loved the Americans and disliked the British and French, he said.
39. (C) Senator Kerry asked the Amir how the U.S. goes about changing its reputation. The Amir said first and foremost the U.S. must do everything in its power to find a lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the best way to begin is by moving first on the Syrian track.
40. (C) The Chairman of the SFRC [Senate Foreign Relations Committee] said he expects a genuine effort by the President this year on an agreement and expressed his hope that Iranian issues would not complicate matters.
2. Dec. 31, 2007 meeting of Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Soliman with American congressmen and diplomats:
“The Israeli-Palestinian conflict remains the core issue; Soliman contended a peaceful resolution would be a “big blow” to terrorist organizations that use the conflict as a pretext.”
P.S. More Arab opinion:
Arab governments opposed Partition in 1947. FDR promised the King of Saudi Arabia that Arab governments would be consulted, but in the end, their opinions were trashed; and the State Department warned that establishing a Jewish state would mean no end of war in the region. The State Department was right. It was not a good idea not to consult the Arab governments.
The Arab governments said in 2002 that if Israel returned to the 67 lines, they would accept Israel’s existence. The U.S. has basically ignored this initiative even as it serves as Israel’s lawyer in the failed peace negotations.
