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The EU just de facto ignored Hungary’s veto on a statement on Israel, prompting questions on how it makes foreign policy decisions. Hungary objected to the EU statement at the UN Security Council (UNSC) in New York at the last minute on Monday (29 April). But Finland read it out anyway at the UNSC meeting, in a game of protocol niceties laced with irritation. The Finnish ambassador to the UN, Kai Sauer, said: “I have the honor to speak on behalf of …” the 27 EU countries which he listed, omitting Hungary. But his subsequent statement used language that made...

On February 18, 2011, the Obama administration vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution sought by the Palestinian Authority and introduced by Lebanon, declaring Israeli settlements to be “illegal.” In fact, the U.S. was the only Security Council member to vote against the measure. Countries supporting the resolution in a 14-1 vote, rather than at least abstaining, included the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. However, the Obama administration wasted no time in trying to have it both ways. It piled on Israel with denunciations of its settlement policies in as strident a manner as the Palestinians and the terrorist-ruled state...

By adopting a policy it openly hated and then condemning its own behavior, the US essentially told Israel, America is not a credible partner. Talkbacks (45) For better or worse, each passing day the Middle East is becoming more unstable. Regimes that have clung to power for decades are now being overthrown and threatened. Others are preemptively cracking down on their opponents or seeking to appease them. While no one can say with certainty what the future will bring to the radically altered Middle Eastern landscape, it is becoming increasingly apparent that US influence over events here will be dramatically...

A compendium of their falsehoods, misdirections, and anti-Israel activities. I recently conducted a week of meetings on Capitol Hill, and it’s clear that Israel’s supporters on the left need a better organization than J Street to represent them.J Street’s attack on liberal flagbearer Rep. Gary Ackerman is evidence of the organization’s incompetent decision-making. J Street’s support for a UN Security Council resolution condemning Israel proves just how counterfeit its “pro-Israel” claim is. The latest Washington Times exposé showing that the organization’s director apparently violated IRS “self-dealing” regulations proves just how corrupt, dishonest, and devious J Street is.Here are 26 reasons...

While no one can say with certainty what the future will bring to the radically altered Middle Eastern landscape, it is becoming increasingly apparent that US influence over events here will be dramatically diminished. the administration told Israel - and all its other allies - that in the era of Obama, the US is not a credible ally. Not only does this message weaken America's allies, it emboldens the likes of Iran and Syria and the Muslim Brotherhood who are increasingly convinced that the US will not stand by its allies in a pinch. The question is why is the...

It is chilling to contemplate how the administration may seek to "balance" its veto by imposing new pressures on Israel. Talkbacks (5) A strange euphoria seems to have blinded some Israelis and American Jews concerning the context of President Barack Obama’s veto of a UN resolution. In the past, blatantly one-sided anti- Israeli resolutions were vetoed as a matter of course. On this occasion, the issue was complicated because of the Obama administration’s disastrous, long-standing obsession with the settlements, which paved the way for the unprecedented Palestinian demand for a settlement freeze as a precondition to negotiations. Desperate to avoid...

Ally Betrayed: The Obama administration wanted the best of both worlds in vetoing a U.N. condemnation of Israel while publicly agreeing with it. Instead, an increasingly impotent United States added insult to injury. Last Friday the U.S. performed a contortionist's routine at the United Nations Security Council. We officially exercised our veto against Lebanon's resolution criminalizing Jewish settlements in Palestinian territories. Yet afterward, both our ambassador to the U.N. and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed public support for the substance of the resolutions they vetoed. In explaining the U.S. veto, Ambassador Susan Rice apologized to the world on behalf...