OPINION

'Regional Stability' Hurts U.S.
In Iraqi Aftermath And In Israel

REED D. RUBINSTEIN

Special to The Jewish News

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M. Rosenthal wrote of
the slaughter of the
Kurds in Iraq: "They
are killing the Jews again."
This stateless ethnic minori-
ty was left at the mercy of its
Arab "neighbors" by Presi-
dent Bush and by the State
Department. In stark con-
trast to Washington's spas-
modic condemnations of Is-
rael for deporting terrorists or
for letting Jews live in East
Jerusalem, the Bush Admin-
istration termed the
slaughter of innocents by Ira-
qi helicopter gunships an "in-
ternal matter."
The Kurds died for
"regional stability" The State
Department sacrificed the
Kurds so that Iraq — a col-
onial vestige of the First
World War — did not split
along ethnic lines. That Sad-
dam Hussein remains in
power, with his army of thugs
and rapists intact, does not
trouble American diplomats
so long as the Gulf area is
"stable."
"Stability" is the center-
piece of U.S. Middle East
policy. In a Jan. 30 joint state-
ment issued by Secretary of
State James Baker and by
Soviet Foreign Minister
Bessmertnykh during the
war with Iraq, the U.S. stated
that "dealing with causes of
instability and sources of con-
flict, including the Arab-
Israel conflict, will be
especially important."
In testimony before the
House Foreign Affairs Com-
mittee, Baker identified five
policy pillars for achieving
stability. These included (1) a
Persian Gulf security ar-
rangement to stabilize the
regional balance of power, (2)
a Middle Eastern arms con-
trol agreement, (3) an Arab
"Marshall Plan" to lessen
intra-Arab tensions, (4) settle-
ment of the Arab-Israel and
Israel-Palestinian conflict to
remove "one of the main
sources of regional instabili-
ty," and (5) a comprehensive
U.S. energy program.
Prior to 1988, "stability"
was tested against the extent
of Soviet influence. The
Palestinian issue is a case in
point. For U.S. policy-makers,
the Palestinian issue did not

Reed Rubinstein holds a
master's degree in
international relations and is
an attorney in Bloomfield
Hills.

exist before 1970. The Palesti-
nians were treated simply as
"refugees!" not a distinct peo-
ple. Yet, when the Arab oil
producers and the Soviet
Union discovered the Palesti-
nian Arab "cause," the
Palestinian issue became a
"source of regional instabili-
ty" to the State Department
because it appeared that sup-
port for the Palestinian Arabs
might enhance Soviet
influence.
As a result, U.S. policy
toward Israel developed a
touch of political
schizophrenia. Israel was
given U.S. aid to keep the
Arabs from winning their
70-year war against the Jews
in part because a strong
Israel limited Soviet expan-
sion. Yet, at the same time,
Israel was criticized because

Although
"stability" has
remained the U.S.
goal, the measure
of stability has
changed. Access
to oil is now the
reference point.

of her inability to make peace
with those who made U.S.
support for Israel necessary
because Arab-Jewish conflict
was perceived as creating
opportunities for Soviet
expansion.
Since 1988, the Soviets
have not been an aggressive
regional player. Although
"stability" has remained the
U.S. goal, the measure of
stability has changed. Soviet
expansion is no longer the
test. Instead, access to oil is
now the reference point.
The health of the world
economy is closely tied to the
stability of the oil markets.
The stability of the oil
markets is closely tied to the
presence or absence of Middle
Eastern conflict. Therefore,
U.S. policy now emphasizes
absence of conflict as its
supreme good.
Such a policy focus is bad
for Israel. With the notable
exception of the Reagan Ad-
ministration, Israel has
always been seen by the State
Department as a liability, not
an asset. The Bush Ad-
ministration has adopted this
attitude. The result has been
unprecedented increases in
Arab arms sales, denial of
critical assistance in the
resettlement of Soviet Jewry,

blatant interference in
Israel's internal affairs, and
the most relentless public
condemnation of Israel since
the Carter Administration,
all against a backdrop of
silence regarding Arab
violence against the Jews.
So long as Israel is viewed
as a source of regional conflict
by the Arabs, and so long as
the U.S. pays heed to Arab
conceptions of the Middle
East, Israel will be under
pressure.

Unfortunately, Israel will
always be a source of regional
conflict because the Arabs do
not tolerate religious or
ethnic minorities. The Kur-
dish experience is instructive.
In 1988, when Iraq used
poison gas against the Kurds,
the Arabs were silent. In the
aftermath of the war against
Iraq, when Iraq used its
Republican Guards against
fleeing civilians, the Arabs
were silent. Arab groups in
the United States that had
organized "relief efforts" for
the people of Iraq were silent
as well.
That the non-Arab Kurds
were predominantly Muslim
may have had something to
do with the silence from
Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria,
Egypt, Kuwait and Dearborn.
When Iraq launched Scuds
against the Jews, Arabs from
Beirut to Amman to Algiers
demonstrated their support
by chanting, "Saddam, Sad-
dam, burn Tel Aviv with
chemical weapons!'
Those who believe that the
Arabs will make peace with
the Jews must explain away
not only the deaths of the
Kurds but also many hun-
dreds of years of history. Since
Mohammed came out of the
desert, the Arab Middle East
has not known peace between
the Arabs and non Arab or
non-Muslim minorities. With
the notable exception of the
North African Moors, Arabs
treated the Jews at best as se-
cond class citizens.
When Israel was establish-
ed — in the face of an invasion
by the forces of Egypt, Syria,
Transjordan, Iraq, Saudi
Arabia and Lebanon — the
ancient Jewish communities
in the Arab Middle East were
uprooted and 800,000 Jews
were expelled. Most resettled
in Israel. These Jews, the
ones who know Arab culture,
are often the most reliable
supporters of the Likud and
other "hard line" Israeli
political parties.
Arab governments range

from medieval monarchies
(Saudi Arabia, Kuwait) to
brutal dictatorships (Syria) to
corrupt oligarchies (Egypt).
Such political systems are not
conducive to coexistence.
Describing Arab society, the
Arab political scientist Ed-
ward Said noted, "Rarely does
one find rational analysis .. .
and undoctored descriptions
of life in the Arab world .. .
with its terrible inequities, its
self-inflicted wounds, its
crushing mediocrity . . . (and
its) remorseless . . . propensi-
ty to violence and extremism
. . ! The Kurds fell victim to
this remorseless propensity to
violence. Thankfully, the
Jews of Israel have not.
So long as the focus of
American policy is oil market
"stability" Israel's security is
at risk. Secretary of State
Baker's peace mission is
designed to achieve such

"stability." Therefore, Israel
and her allies must dig in and
prepare for an onslaught of
intense pressure to make con-
cessions in an effort to ap-
pease the Arabs. The Arabs,
however, cannot be appeased.
Therefore, until the center of
U.S. policy gravity changes,
the status quo must be
maintained.
President Bush encouraged
the Kurds to rise up against
Saddam Hussein. The CIA
reportedly provided organiza-
tion and other assistance. Yet,
when the cannon came, the
Kurds died.
In the smoke of Iraq's guns
and in the screams of the Kur-
dish children are lessons for
those who believe that Israel
can make a "peace" with the
Arabs and depend upon the
U.S. for protection in case the
"peace" turns to war. Are we
listening? El

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

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