Civilian-Civilian Relations

Earlier this semester, WUPR published an article in which the author spoke at length about the importance of civilian-military relations. The state of the military at large, the author argued, stands to be wholly compromised by antics like those on display in General Stanley McChrystal’s now infamous Rolling Stone interview. And, I think, the author was probably right—at least with reference to civilian-military relations. At no point, however, did the writer entertain the world of civilian-civilian relations.

Perhaps, he should have. Earlier today, Representative Eric Cantor met with Bibi Netanyahu in New York, and, while the particulars of the conversation have yet to be revealed, Cantor’s office did release the following:

“Eric has a long standing friendship with Prime Minister Netanyahu and appreciated the opportunity to catch up last evening. The discussion lasted over an hour and covered a range of topics that included Iran, the United Nations, and the recent U.S. election which saw the Republicans win the majority in the House.

On Iran:

Eric made clear that he believes that it is time for the administration to fully and aggressively implement the Iran Sanctions Act passed by Congress earlier this year. Further delay is not an option, and unless the Administration continues to ratchet up the pressure on the Iranian regime, the progress made by the sanctions already implemented will unravel. Now is not the time to ease off the pressure.

On the UN:

Eric reiterated his belief that compromise between Israel and the Palestinians can only be achieved through direct negotiations between the parties. A unilaterally declared Palestinian state will only create more distrust between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and move the process further away from peace. He believes that unilateral action by the Palestinians at the United Nations is a diversion and should be considered a nonstarter by all serious parties. The Administration should make it absolutely clear that the U.S. will veto any effort by the Palestinians to act in such a manner. If the Palestinians truly want to achieve a peace agreement they must return to the negotiating table and deal directly with Israel.

On the U.S. Election:

Eric stressed that the new Republican majority will serve as a check on the Administration and what has been, up until this point, one party rule in Washington. He made clear that the Republican majority understands the special relationship between Israel and the United States, and that the security of each nation is reliant upon the other.”

Pieces of the last paragraph—namely, those in which Cantor appears to have spoken out against the President to a foreign head of state—are interesting. Particularly bearing in mind the strategic implications of the United States relationship with Israel, this doesn’t sit well…