Gen. David Petraeus, commander of the US Military’s Central Command (CENTCOM), telephoned IDF Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi on Wednesday night to reassure Israel that comments attributed to him regarding supposed Israeli intransigence were spun out of context.
Last week, Petraeus testified before the Senate’s Armed Services Committee. A 56-page report that CENTCOM had submitted alongside Petraeus’s oral testimony caused a storm by claiming that Israeli intransigence was a problem for the US military and was fomenting conflict in the Middle East.
“The enduring hostilities between Israel and some of its neighbors present distinct challenges to our ability to advance our interests,” the CENTCOM report read. “Arab anger over the Palestinian question limits the strength and depth of US partnerships with governments and peoples in the [Middle East] and weakens the legitimacy of moderate regimes in the Arab world.”
The above words, which appeared in the report but were not uttered by Petraeus in his oral testimony, were pounced upon by critics of Israel as confirmation of what many of them have said for years – that Israel is the source of instability in the region.
On Wednesday, though, Petraeus poured cold water on the written testimony. In an appearance at St. Anselm College in Goffstown, New Hampshire, he told reporters that his testimony had been spun by bloggers.
“There’s a 56-page document that we submitted that has a statement in it that describes various factors that influence the strategic context in which we operate, and among those we listed the Mideast peace process,” he said, according to a transcript of the press conference that appeared on the Web site of
The American Spectator monthly. “We noted in there that there was a perception at times that America sides with Israel and so forth. And I mean, that is a perception. It is there. I don’t think that’s disputable. But I think people inferred from what that said and then repeated it a couple of times and bloggers picked it up and spun it. And I think that has been unhelpful, frankly.”
The report, he continued, included additional “perceptions” in the Middle East, which falls within CENTCOM’s area of responsibility, including the fact that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad denies both the Holocaust and Israel’s right to exist.
“So we have all the factors in there, but this is just one, and it was pulled out of this 56-page document, which was not what I read to the Senate at all,” he said.
During the brief press conference and following a question by American Spectator reporter Philip Klein, Petraeus revealed that he had called the IDF chief of General Staff, whom he referred to as “Gabi,” and reassured him that the reports were inaccurate.
The IDF Spokesman’s Office confirmed that the two men had spoken and officials said that the fact that Petraeus referred to Ashkenazi as “Gabi” was likely a sign of the close ties between the generals.
Following the reports that emerged last week, Israeli defense official expressed grave concern regarding the remarks attributed to Petraeus, warning that they could presage a downturn in Israeli-US military ties. Officials said on Thursday that it was possible that the remarks, attributed to Petraeus, who has been touted as a Republican candidate in the 2012 presidential election, were purposely blown out of context by the Obama administration.
While backing away from the idea that Israel was the source of instability, Petraeus did stand by the CENTCOM report’s assertion that there were leaders in the region who held this view.
“If you go to the moderate leaders in the Arab world, they will tell you that the lack of progress in the Mideast peace process causes them problems,” he said. “Their concern is that those who promote violence in Gaza and the West Bank will claim that because there is no progress diplomatically, the only way to get progress is through violence, and that is their concern and that is what we were really trying to convey.”
Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday that Israeli-Palestinian tensions are affecting US national security interests in the region.
“The lack of progress toward Middle East peace is clearly an issue that’s exploited by our adversaries in the region” and “does affect US national security interests in the region,” Gates said at a press conference in Washington, AFP reported.
Defense officials said that the defense establishment was not concerned
by the possibility that the diplomatic crisis with Washington would
impair defense ties. Proof, the officials said, was that an IAF and
Defense Ministry delegation signed a deal this week to buy three giant
Hercules military transport aircraft.
The deal, which had been
in the works for a year, was scheduled months ago to be signed in
March, and its finalization was not connected to Prime Minister
Binyamin Netanyahu’s visit to the US, officials said.
“The ties
are extremely strong between the defense establishments, and
traditionally – even when there have been ups and downs on the
political level – the commitment to Israeli security has remained
steadfast,” one senior Defense Ministry official said.