The Biden administration is trying to lay the groundwork for the establishment of a Palestinian state with Israeli leaders and representatives of civil society, expecting a future post-Netanyahu government: "He will not remain there forever."
According to NBC, Secretary of State Antony Blinken is increasing pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the future of the Gaza Strip, revealing growing frustration within the Biden administration regarding differences with Netanyahu on the issue.
"We have today a profound regional opportunity in the Middle East that we did not have in the past," said Blinken during an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "The challenge is to realize it." When asked if Netanyahu is the right prime minister to seize this opportunity, Blinken responded that "these are decisions that Israelis need to make" and added, "We are at a turning point."
Blinken's comments come just a week after his visit to the Middle East in an attempt to build consensus between Israel and Arab leaders on the post-war plan with Hamas in Gaza. According to senior officials, the gaps between the Biden administration and Netanyahu on the war, as well as the Israeli Prime Minister's refusal to consider US proposals for Gaza after the war, have deepened since Blinken's visit to Israel about a week ago.
Arab leaders agree on new Palestinian rule in Gaza
According to officials, the Secretary of State returned to Washington after Netanyahu rejected all government requests except one: the understanding that Israel would not attack Hezbollah in Lebanon. In the midst of this, Blinken's main achievement during his visit was a commitment from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and four other Arab leaders to assist in the reconstruction of Gaza after the war.
The Arab leaders also agreed to support a new and improved Palestinian government that would secure Gaza, according to government officials. Additionally, the Saudi Crown Prince offered to normalize relations with Israel as part of a Gaza reconstruction deal – a diplomatic breakthrough that Netanyahu has sought for a long time, but only on the condition that Palestinians are given a prospect for their own state.
However, Netanyahu rejected the proposal for the establishment of a Palestinian state. Now, three senior Americans have conveyed that the Biden administration is looking beyond Netanyahu to try and achieve US goals in the region. They told NBC that "Netanyahu will not be there forever."Blinken told the Israeli leader that there was no military solution to Hamas at the end of the day and that the Prime Minister needed to acknowledge this or history would repeat itself, and violence would persist, but Netanyahu refused to relent.
The senior officials noted that the Biden administration is trying to lay the groundwork with other Israeli leaders and representatives of civil society in anticipation of a future post-Netanyahu government. In an attempt to bypass Netanyahu, Blinken also separately met with members of the diplomatic security cabinet and other Israeli leaders, including opposition leader Yair Lapid, during his visit to the Middle East.
Blinken's goal in the Middle East was to present Netanyahu with a unified Arab proposal after the war, as part of Biden's hopes to reshape the Middle East and establish a Palestinian state. A senior government official acknowledged that this is likely to wait for the post-Netanyahu era.
NBC also reported that tensions between the two leaders have manifested in the absence of direct communication between them in recent weeks. The last known conversation between Netanyahu and Biden took place on December 23, over three weeks ago.