LE 6. How is the U.S. involved?

Why does the United States support Israel “no matter what?”

Colonialism

• Settler Colonialism: Both the United States and Israel are settler colonial societies of European origin that exist because of the violent removal and replacement of indigenous populations. Settler colonialism is based on the belief that the colonizing group is superior to the indigenous group; both Israel and the United States were built on this belief and this belief continues to show up in every part of society.

• Exploitation of Resources for Profit: Both the United States and Israel regularly exploit and profit off of the natural resources in the lands they colonize. The Middle East is an incredibly important global source of oil, including a recently discovered oil reserve off of Gaza’s coast which is being extracted by a British company.

• Military Power: Backed from the beginning by Europe and increasingly over time by the U.S., Israel has grown into a strong military power. Israel is able to carry out U.S. funded actions in the region with no consequences and Palestine has become testing grounds for new and experimental weapons. There is a lot of money involved in weapons development, and both Israel and the United States profit.

American Zionism

• Christian Zionism: Not only Jews can be Zionists, and in fact there a very influential Christian Zionist movement has existed in Britain and in the U.S. since before Israel existed. Christian Zionists believe that the establishment of a Jewish “homeland” in “Israel” will fulfill a Biblical prophecy and bring Jesus Christ back to Earth as its king. These early Zionists were very politically active in their support of Israel, and this support continues today.

• Jewish Zionism: The United States has the second largest population of Jews in the world today, after Israel. There is a strong familial and cultural connection between Zionist Jews in both settler states; so much so that Jewish youth are recruited from the U.S. to visit Israel, all expenses paid.

• Zionism in Politics: There are a number of Zionist lobbying organizations, who spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to convince politicians to vote their way, in support of Israel. Because of this, many politicians in both major political parties- the Democrats and the Republicans-support Israel without question.

Global Affairs

• Cold War: The birth of Israel took place at the start of the Cold War, which was a period of extreme tension between the United States and the Soviet Union (which included Russia), along with other countries that found themselves having to take sides with the capitalist Americans or the communist Soviets. The Cold War took place following WWII, after the U.S. had used the atomic bomb, so nuclear weapons were in the mix, heightening the danger. Although the Soviet Union and the U.S. didn’t fight directly, they did engage in a number of proxy wars, in which they supported opposing sides in a conflict. For example, in 1967, two Soviet-backed countries (Egypt & Syria) attacked Israel in efforts to regain land taken in 1948. The U.S. stepped in and supplied military support to Israel, which was ultimately victorious. From the 1970s onward, the U.S. military spending to Israel has increased steadily. Some argue that the Cold War never ended, since the tensions between Russia and the United States persist.

• Strategic Location: Israel is in a strategic location, at the crossroads of Asia, Europe, and Africa. It is surrounded by majority Muslim and Arab countries and is often described as the only “democracy” in the Middle East. Since the U.S. is way across the world, Israel serves as the United States’ entry point into the Middle East. It has often used Israel in deals that involve the region, such as the current India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor. Billions of dollars and both private corporations and government-based companies are wrapped up in these deals. In this particular deal, the corridor cuts right through Gaza in occupied Palestine.