We often hear the cries or walloping of an individual who has now managed to cement himself a daily designated spot on our screens. Whilst he walks down the path of self-destruction, he is laying bare the American future, and what is left of the reminiscent ‘Make America Great Again’ campaign. Most dangerously he is subliminally reshaping the world order; what we call the ‘balance of power’. Upsetting this balance inevitably risks a far from a harmonious ending; where notions of good and evil are trumped by military advantage and intrigue.
Before we tackle the question of Israel, more importantly the recognition of Jerusalem, we must draw light to the evolution of crises in the Middle East; America’s backyard since Reagan. The failure to overthrow Assad, by pumping exuberant amounts of cash and military aid into the hands of a number of largely rogue rebel and jihadist groups was ultimately to their detriment. Assad remained in power and crucially indebted to the Russians, who now subsequently found themselves in favour with the vast majority of the Middle East, including Iran. Putin, has strategically found himself in a pool, full of oil, and with the ability to undermine American hegemony on an international scale. Geo-politically speaking, the US no longer has a backyard to play in. So where does it go to play ball?
Whilst there has been no shortage of media attention to the suspicious relationship between Trump and Putin, they’ve failed to acknowledge the peculiarity in the openness of dialogue between these two nations, who have long been opposed to one another’s national security, foreign policy and international presence. The sharing of information between the CIA and FSB, the three state visits this year ( greater than any other President’s in history), and now the exposure of Trump’s supposed involvement in the James Comey case is surely no accident. The evidence is telling and begs us to question - is the US being exploited by its own President?
Trump’s diplomacy must be scrutinised if we are to understand the importance of Israel. The pro-Israel lobby has ascended the ranks of political influence, and with associated members like the Aldersons, who over the years have acquired enormous amounts of political power, through hefty donations in electoral campaigns, have thus been able to sway the political agenda in the interests of a few, justified for the many. Should we be allowing lobbyists like AIPAC to undermine the autonomy of foreign policy?
All the questions I have posed above, lead me to conclude that Jerusalem is a trigger point. Jerusalem has brought collective understanding to Trump’s presidency, by revealing the US’s inability to dictate the world order as it once did. The US has failed to shape the Middle East in its eye, and has let it crumble beneath itself, all whilst benefiting foreign powers and undermining its own integrity as a democratic nation, bridged across to the East to forge relations with Russia at the expense of American hegemony. Jerusalem is a defining point in American history, it’s where the US draws its line, takes a firm stance against the world order and surrenders. The question we should be asking is, what’s next?
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