Can Gilad Erdan stay on top of two top diplomatic positions at once?
Diplomatic Affairs: Former ambassadors think that while it creates some unnecessary challenges, it’s still possible to do the job effectively.
By OMRI NAHMIASCAN GILAD ERDAN be in two places at once? (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
WASHINGTON – It’s been more than 60 years since the last time that the same person held two of Israel’s top diplomatic positions simultaneously. Abba Eban, the famed diplomat, served at the same time both as the ambassador to the UN and as ambassador to Washington during the country’s first decade. And while Eban’s career is considered a success story, no one was ever appointed again to both positions at the same time. Until this week.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced a complicated situation after signing the power-sharing agreement with Benny Gantz. While 18 Likud members expected to serve in the cabinet, he had room for only 11 positions. He decided to use some diplomatic appointments as a way to convince Likud members to give up their cabinet seats. Netanyahu acted similarly with the current ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, who was appointed in 2015, shortly after being sworn in as science minister.Netanyahu offered the UN job to Erdan several times in the past, but the ambitious minister preferred to stay around. After Netanyahu’s success in forming a coalition, and with an appointment to serve in Washington for at least one year, Erdan’s dilemma came to an end.But is it ideal to have the same person holding both positions?FORMER AMBASSADORS think that while it creates some unnecessary challenges, it’s still possible to do the job effectively.Danny Ayalon, who served as ambassador to Washington from 2002 to 2006, told The Jerusalem Post that there is no problem in filling both positions.“Erdan could do it. Will Israel suffer any diplomatic damage? I don’t think so,” he said. “It’s only an hourlong flight. You can start your morning in Washington, have lunch with the secretary-general in New York, and get back to DC for dinner.“Who were the only two Israeli ambassadors that became prime ministers? Benjamin Netanyahu, the ambassador to the UN, and Yitzhak Rabin, the ambassador to Washington. So Erdan is basically doubling his chances to become prime minister one day,” Ayalon joked.He told the Post that comparing the two cases, those of Erdan and Eban, is inevitable. “Abba Eban served in both positions over 60 years ago, and in many aspects, it was more challenging than today. The flights took more time; you couldn’t call anyone during a plane or a train ride. It was more complicated to commute.”“When you compare the two time periods, Israel had enormous challenges in the 1950s as well,” he continued. “The fedayeen would cross the border frequently, we suffered many casualties, and the 1956 Sinai war created intense pressure on Israel from the US. Regardless, Israel also suffered many condemnations at the UN. The country was weaker, with fewer diplomatic relationships, and without a strong lobby in Congress.”Eban did a tremendous job, Ayalon said, and while we cannot compare the two in terms of their personalities, Eban proved he could deliver, “which means that, yes, one person can have both positions.”He also noted that there are situations of overlap between the two positions. “Unfortunately, the UN is frequently discussing Israel. But the decision regarding the use of veto power is taken in Washington, not in New York. So, in many cases, the ambassador to the UN needs the assistance of the ambassador in Washington.”Ayalon mentioned his work during the Lebanon war in 2006, noting that significant parts of the job on UN Security Council Resolution 1701 were done between Tzipi Livni and Condoleezza Rice – meaning, in Washington rather than at the UN.“As surprising as it may be, having one person doing the job could help this person to be more productive, having the network of two top diplomats,” he said.Ayalon, who also served at the UN as chief of staff for ambassador Gad Yaacobi, said that one factor we should keep in mind is that the UN is active primarily during the General Assembly, between September and December. “I assume that this is when Erdan would be in New York. And in any case, all the world leaders are in New York during this time.”“In the rest of the time, you are mostly building a network with diplomats from various countries, including those that Israel has no diplomatic ties with,” he continued. “But you can achieve that in Washington, too. I had meetings with ministers and ambassadors that you wouldn’t believe.“Is it an ideal situation? I don’t know if it’s perfect, but it’s possible,” he added. “I know Erdan well. He is an ambitious, hard-working person. Keep in mind that an ambassador does not work alone. He will have his deputies and staff. If you have a reliable deputy, he can speak to the national security adviser while you are in New York. And your deputy in New York could make the speech at the Security Council while you are in Washington.”DORE GOLD, former ambassador to the UN, says holding the two top positions in the US will be a challenge for Erdan.“It’s doable, but it’s not easy,” he told the Post. “The position of ambassador of the UN, which I had, is seasonal, meaning that it starts becoming intense at the beginning of September every year and lasts through Christmas. Afterward, it eases up.”Gold served at the UN from 1997 to 1999, and as director-general of the Foreign Ministry. Currently, he is the president of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.“What all diplomatic positions involve is the ability of an ambassador to lobby,” Gold noted. “So, let’s say there is an anti-Israel resolution coming up to the General Assembly. You may have to have meetings with 70 ambassadors or more. It also requires giving them background. I remember showing [them] films of Palestinian television full of hostile incitement. But if you expose the ambassadors to that background, you have a reasonably easier time gaining their support for a position that defends Israel’s interests. But that’s something that takes time. There’s no question about it.”He told the Post that an ambassador who has both positions has enormous personal prestige. “Therefore, when he speaks, he will have a lot of persuasive power.”“The important thing is they understand that the ambassador has the ear of the prime minister,” he continued. “There’s no question that Ron Dermer was one of the most outstanding ambassadors Israel ever had in Washington, and he was both persuasive, but he also could demonstrate that he had the ear of the prime minister. And secondly, he had access to the highest levels of the administration. And if the administration doesn’t like somebody, it can freeze them out. That wasn’t the case with Dermer.”However, he noted that one crucial aspect of the ambassador job is to have face-to-face discussions with his peers, which could be a challenge when you need to commute from Washington to New York. “It’s not insurmountable; it’s doable. But it’s tough,” he said.“The biggest challenge is that the ambassador to Washington is also responsible for Israel’s standing in America. And I think our biggest challenge is reaching out to the campuses in the United States. So, Erdan brings that advantage in, but there is the problem of time and distance. If he wants to speak at UCLA or at Stanford on the West Coast, he’s got to get out there, and he’s got to meet with local leadership, and that’s tough.”Gold said that Erdan’s experience in dealing with the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement as minister of strategic affairs is a big advantage that he brings to the table.“He has to make a case of why the entire BDS movement is not only a threat to Israel, but parts of it are a threat to America,” Gold said. “We know from our research that the same people who are trying to advance hostile initiatives at the ICC against Israel are seeking to undertake initiatives against US military forces in Afghanistan at the ICC. A strong Israeli ambassador in Washington will have to be swimming in this material and bring it with him wherever he’s going.”
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