Israel, Palestine and Labor’s ideological bonfire
'It's as if a rupture in Australia–Israel ties is the Albanese government's desired policy goal'
On Monday night, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said we expect both Russia and China to abide by international law and expect Israel to do the same. She has never specified whether Israel is not complying with the law or what law is being violated but implied that there have been violations. It’s precisely this kind of signalling that is encouraging extremists in Australia.
When it comes to our previously friendly relations with Israel the death by a thousand cuts approach continued last week. The Albanese government sliced off Australia’s previously principled vote against a one-sided UN General Assembly resolution on “the question of Palestine”.
We had previously voted no or abstained. But this one repeated the demand of the last resolution in which the government changed our position: Israel unilaterally withdraws from all disputed territory without any negotiations and pay compensation to the Palestinians. Curiously no obligations were required from the Palestinians, with arrangements relating to guaranteeing Israeli security totally absent.
The resolution rewards Palestinian aggression. If the Palestinians can receive international recognition for a state without engaging with Israel or moderating their positions, then why would they be motivated to undertake the process to do so? The point was stressed last week by the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The statement strongly condemned our government promoting Palestinian statehood at the UN, describing these actions as a reward for terrorism and suggesting we may no longer be a “key ally” of the Jewish state.
The Albanese government’s spin that this one-sided concession somehow supports a two-state peace process is Orwellian doublespeak. Critically, Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza in 2005. How could our government possibly expect Israel to blindly walk down that dead end alley again? As with Gaza, without credible security guarantees, unequivocal acceptance of Israel’s right to exist and abandonment of the so-called “right of return” to Israeli territory, the result is an amplified base of terror and assault and implacably hostile leaders with no interest in peace. The recognition matter should be resolved in the context of a negotiated outcome between Israel and the Palestinians, including agreement on final borders. We should only move on formal recognition to leverage building an outcome that delivers peace with security.
The spurious lawfare that claims Israeli presence in the West Bank is illegal should be rejected by our government. Some of this is required for legitimate security reasons under the law of occupation. The remainder isn’t unlawful in the context of the complex legal background. Some of this presence has been a staple part of negotiations to date in relation to an equalising land compromise that would resolve communal connection issues for both sides. But settler outposts are a political impediment to the peace process. The continuing Israeli dismantlement of these should be accelerated.
In recognising a state of Palestine, Australia would no longer be in line with key partners such as the US. But we would be standing with Russia, China and Iran. Of course, those autocracies would not unilaterally recognise a state for other aspiring peoples, such as for Chechnya, Kurdistan, Taiwan or Tibet.
Will the Albanese government recognise Palestine before the next election? Its calculated electoral manoeuvre seems to be to campaign on all its anti-Israel measures this term, most recently denying a former Israeli justice minister a visa and “respecting” the clear violation of the due process “complementarity” provision governing the International Criminal Court after it issued an arrest warrant for Israel’s Prime Minister.
Even though there is a likelihood that there would be a larger electoral backlash of those concerned about extremism, the government could promise to recognise Palestine in the next term if re-elected, claiming a mandate for the decision. Having signed up to this latest UN resolution they can point to the international conference to be held in June next year to achieve a two-state solution and pin recognition to its outcome. However, we would give recognising Palestine around a 20 per cent chance of happening before the election if the government calculates that not recognising now will cost them more votes than they’d get by promising to do it next term.
Earlier this year, in a response to Norway, Spain and Ireland’s announcement that they would recognise Palestine as a state, Biden administration officials stressed that the president believed a Palestinian state should be established through negotiations, not unilateral recognition. The same is President-elect Donald Trump’s own firm view. It’s part of his presidential record. Israel will likely approach the Trump transition team with a request to contact Australia to explicitly communicate the President-elect’s opposition to the move.
Our government should take note of Trump’s strong warning to Hamas to return the hostages before his inauguration. It’s a clear sign that Trump is already claiming ownership of US foreign policy following his success with the Abraham Accords. He would likely take any major diplomatic shifts taken without consultation or recognition of this reality during this period as a personal affront. That may well play out in his approach to tariffs and consideration of our other national interests. We have little to gain and much to lose from such a confrontation.
As far as Israel’s reaction to any unilateral move on our part, it’s worth looking at Israel’s response this year to recognition of Palestine by Norway, Ireland and Spain. Alongside summoning their ambassadors for a reprimand, Israel is considering preventing diplomats from these three countries from operating in Palestinian Authority territories. Israel’s Foreign Ministry announced it was revoking the diplomatic status of eight Norwegian diplomats. Israel is considering downgrading diplomatic relations and refusing requests from senior officials of the countries that announced recognition of a Palestinian state to visit Israel.
It’s not clear what price we would pay with Israel if we adopted a unilateral policy on recognition. But we would certainly be on the receiving end of loaded condemnation, even if it didn’t result in Israel recalling its ambassador. Any influence we did have with Israel would plummet. The potential downgrade in relations for us would mean a likely drop off in the sort of security cooperation that has kept Australians safe from terrorist attacks and helped protect our troops on operations by accessing Israeli force protection technology and threat intelligence. Our ability to influence Israel or play any meaningful role on the Palestinian issue and in the broader Middle East would be severely diminished.
The Albanese government keeps saying that its approach to Israel and Palestine is all about us realigning with a consensus international position. But there is no consensus and it is not just about recognition of Palestine. We’ve never seen a time when a government has set out so determinedly to trash a diplomatic relationship. This government has torn to shreds a 76-year friendship forged in two world wars and built on the strong Labor tradition established by Ben Chifley and Doc Evatt. Every part of the relationship has now been tipped onto Labor’s ideological bonfire. It’s as if a rupture in Australia–Israel ties is the Albanese government’s desired policy goal.
Australia’s domestic antisemitic escalation and foreign policy vilification of the Jewish state are not coincidental but interdependent. Torture by slow burning and death by a thousand cuts, respectively. Given that Labor went into the last election promising to be bipartisan on Israel policy, it’s up to the government to explain why it is so focused on smashing ties now.
Anthony Bergin is a senior fellow at Strategic Analysis Australia. Mike Kelly is co-convenor of Labor Friends of Israel. A version of this article appeared in The Australian.
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