Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's strained relations with the Biden administration could worsen following the resignation of Benny Gantz from Israel's wartime coalition. Gantz, who served as a moderate check on Netanyahu's government alongside Eisenkot, is seen as an architect of Israel's current wartime strategy. His departure raises concerns about Netanyahu yielding to far-right influences, which could lead to a potential conflict with Lebanon and deeper fissures with the U.S. Additionally, the clash between Netanyahu's political views and a proposed Saudi-U.S. defense pact, which aims to bolster Israel's security doctrine and U.S. strategy, further complicates the situation. Analysts fear that without Gantz and other moderates, policy disputes could be greatly exacerbated, impacting Israel's essential ties with the United States and its broader geopolitical stance. This marks a return to the pre–October 7 status quo, but with much more at stake.
Netanyahu conned the United States. Now Biden must make tough decisions on how to end the Gaza war / @AlonPinkas https://t.co/8qrzgTjfPC
A Saudi-American defense pact that would serve Israel's security doctrine and U.S. strategy is clashing with the messianic views Netanyahu is politically beholden to, making Israel Iran's partner in the effort to thwart the deal / Zvi Bar'el https://t.co/B9B4sWzAok
"Netanyahu’s relations with the Biden administration were strained even with Gantz and Eisenkot on board. Yet they acted as a moderate check on the government, and policy disputes could be greatly exacerbated without them," writes @DavidMakovsky. https://t.co/Rq9u2KBjdG
Benny Gantz’s departure from Israel’s wartime coalition is less a governmental death blow than a return to the pre–October 7 status quo—except that much more is now at stake, @Yair_Rosenberg writes: https://t.co/w5tCr9fuXH
A Saudi-U.S. defense pact that would serve Israel's security doctrine and U.S. strategy is clashing with the messianic views Netanyahu is politically beholden to / Zvi Bar'el https://t.co/gpzMRvjomN
What are the policy implications of Gantz's resignation? If Netanyahu yields to the far right, establishment figures fear the outcome will be a war in #Lebanon, deeper fissures with the U.S., and an no deal with #Riyadh, writes @DavidMakovsky. https://t.co/Rq9u2KBR3e
The fact is that Gantz is an architect of how Israel has run this war, not an alternative. He seems to envision ending the war through the Netanyahu-Biden plan and his day-after tidbits, but he won't say the words / @dahliasc https://t.co/FySLLnoNOV
If Netanyahu continues to stoke friction with the U.S. government, he risks eroding what remains of the bipartisan consensus in Washington on Israel—and destroying Israel’s essential ties with the United States, writes @ShalomLipner. https://t.co/Iqf1ziQi8m