Does anybody know why?

Question

Why does the american government have a special relationship with Isreal?

Answer 1

Lots of reasons. To begin with, we played a role in setting it up. Secondly, outside of Israel, I believe we have the largest Jewish population in the world. Thirdly, it is a primarily western culture in the MIddle East.

Also, and this is a weak reason, but one that's fun to play "what if" about, when the Zionists were deciding where to begin settling, America was actually discussed as a possibility.

Lots of Jewish refugees from Hitler came here. We lowered our quotas before the war, and perhaps there's some guilty feelings about that on our part?

To be completely pragmatic about it, the US has a lot more to gain from having Israel as an ally in the Middle East. During the mandate period, when the area was under British control but Britain had already established that they would be pulling out of Palestine in a given number of years, it was the Jewish residents of the area that quickly began organizing and setting up ad-hoc committees in anticipation of the area's independence.

I mean, the US also has a special relationship with Ireland and tended to drag its feet in condemning the IRA's activities in N. Ireland for the same reason. We're allies with Great Britain, but Irish ex-pats and their descendents are a lot more united and vocal than the British. (and we know it means to be a colony of Britain)

Answer 2

Interesting question, might be worth a deeper study. I'm inclined to think that the 'situation evolved' that way because the British and French already had economic, political and military ties with the Arab countries in the region. Although the British to an extent 'sponsored' the creation of Israel, they fought very hard against Jewish terrorism and blocked unlimited immigration to Palestine.

So by default, the US was the one major world power that wasn't seen by the Israeli's as 'against' them. The US ultimately cultivated deep ties with the Saudis so they ended up with 'friends' on both sides of the Middle East conflict. Curiously the Saudis best friends in the US were in Texas (oil drilling was their common interest) , while the Israelis could count on support in the liberal North-East States.

And - as I've just recollected - the Middle East became in the 1950's and 60's and 70's as much part of the Cold War as Vietnam and Central America. As the Arab States gravitated towards the Soviet Union, Israel became a 'test' of how serious the US was in pushing back Soviet influence in the Middle East. The irony I guess is that the Israelis, once a pawn in a superpower game run by the US and Soviets, learnt how to play so well that it is suggested that they have turned the tables, and are dictating the terms and direction of the game.

But did the Israelis deliberately cultivate and try to influence US policy on the Middle East? Almost certainly, that's the aim of any country's Diplomatic efforts. Has the US sometimes in supporting Israel acted against its own 'long term best interests', and even the long term interests of Israel in the region? Possibly - that's the problem with politicians elected for 3 to 5 year terms. They tend to define their countries interests in terms of their own (personal) best interest. Meanwhile thousands die on both sides of the conflict. And China and Russia are happy to see the US embroiled in the Middle East while they map strategies to asert (and re-assert in the case of Russia) their roles as world powers.

Answer 3

In 1948 when Israel became a nation, the United States supported that move because it established a democracy in the Middle East with the hopes that many more countries would follow and become democracies. In addition, Israel has very strong financial backing from the Private sector here in the United States because there are so many successful Jews living here, and they support Israel.

Chow!!