by Yoram Ettinger
The most critical,
clear and present dangers to U.S. national security, homeland security
and economy are Iran's nuclearization, Islamic terrorism, the explosive
impact of the seismic Arab street, the potential disruption of the
supply and price of imported-oil and the declining American posture of
deterrence.
The most clear and
present policy to alleviate these threats would be U.S. energy
independence, ending dependence on unpredictable Arab oil producers,
bolstering the U.S. posture of deterrence, accelerating economic growth,
improving the trade balance, reducing the budget deficit, lowering
energy costs, expanding employment and putting more funds toward
infrastructures, education, the elderly, Medicare and human services in
general.
As demonstrated by the
stormy, seismic Arab Winter, and irrespective of the Palestinian issue,
the Arab street is increasingly anti-U.S., Islamist-oriented, violently
intolerant, unpredictable, unstable and terror-dominated.
The U.S. mainland and
vital U.S. interests abroad are targeted by Muslim regimes and
organizations. They adhere to a 14-century-old transnational,
imperialistic ideology that they are divinely ordained to rule the
globe. They are energized by their assessment that Europe is caving in,
while the "Great Satan," the U.S., is increasingly vulnerable.
Iran is systematically
defying the U.S. A nuclear Iran would trigger a meltdown of the pro-U.S.
Arab oil-producing regimes, traumatize the supply and price of oil,
devastate the U.S. economy, embolden Islamic terrorist sleeper cells,
intensify the anti-U.S. policy of Venezuela, and accelerate nuclear
proliferation in the Middle East and beyond, all of which would further
erode global sanity and undermine vital U.S. interests.
A tour of the Middle
East reveals that Iraq has become a central theater of anti-U.S. Islamic
terrorism, increasingly controlled by Iran. Yemen is afflicted by a
14-century-old intra-tribal civil war, posing a threat to the House of
Saud, Oman and oil tankers passing through the straits of Ban el-Mandeb
and Hormuz.
The Syrian lava --
boiled by intra-Arab and intra-Muslim wars by proxies -- threatens to
sweep through Lebanon, Jordan and possibly the Persian Gulf. Jordan's
pro-U.S. Hashemite regime is facing lethal threats from Syria, Iraq,
disgruntled Bedouins, Hamas terrorists, the Palestinian majority and the
Muslim Brotherhood. Post-Mubarak Egypt improves ties with Iran and
provides a tailwind to Muslim Brotherhood cells throughout the Arab
World, advancing its trans-national, expansionist anti-US agenda. Libya
and Tunisia undergo a rapid process of Islamization, and Morocco and
Algeria face a major challenge by Islamic oppositions. Since 2002,
Turkey has veered toward the Muslim world away from the U.S. The current
upheaval on the Arab street highlights the Middle East as a region of
unpredictable geo-political shocks.
U.S. energy
independence -- via precision horizontal drilling and fracking -- would
be a game-changer in the international arena, constituting an effective
shock-absorber for the U.S. and its allies. It would minimize U.S.
dependence on foreign markets and multilateral/international entities,
enhancing the independence of U.S. unilateral national security actions.
U.S. national security
and economic interests are also bolstered by Israel, which has adopted
the independent oil producers' state of mind: defiance of the jagged
cutting edge of nature, a can-do mentality, independent action and
out-of-the-box-thinking.
In 2013, Israel
constitutes the only stable, predictable, capable, democratic and
unconditional U.S. ally, upgrading the shock-absorbing capabilities of
the U.S., reducing regional instability, serving as a critical line of
defense for Jordan and other U.S allies. Israel is a unique source of
intelligence and battle and counter-terrorism tactics. The U.S. receives
from Israel more intelligence than from all NATO countries combined.
Moreover, U.S. special
operation forces benefit from Israel's experience in facing improvised
explosive devices, suicide bombers and car bombs. U.S. pilots employ
Israel Air Force tactics to evade Russian-made surface-to-air missiles.
U.S. homeland security officials, first responders and police chiefs
systematically receive Israel's lessons for combating Arab terrorism and
tracking terrorists.
Israel has become a
unique pipeline of cutting-edge technologies for the U.S. defense and
commercial industries. For instance, the F-16, F-15 and hundreds of
additional U.S. military systems, employed by Israel, are systematically
upgraded through lessons learned by the Israeli battle-tested
"laboratory." These lessons are shared online, in real time, with the
U.S. manufacturers, providing the U.S. with a mega-billion dollar global
competitive edge, expanding U.S. exports, employment, research and
development.
A similar process has
benefited some 300 U.S. high-tech giants, who established research and
development centers in Israel, leveraging Israel's innovative
technologies, establishing production lines, creating more jobs and
exports in the U.S.
Israel's unique
capabilities extend America's strategic arm at a time of U.S. withdrawal
and defense cuts. According to the late Gen. Alexander Haig, "Israel is
the largest U.S. aircraft carrier which does not require even one U.S.
soldier, cannot be sunk, deployed in a most critical area for U.S.
interests. If there would not be an Israel, the U.S. would have to
deploy a few real additional aircraft carriers to the Mediterranean,
which would cost the U.S. taxpayer about $15 billion annually."
In the battle against Iran's
nuclearization, Islamic terrorism and threats to the supply and price of
imported oil, U.S. interests would be well served by energy
independence and by enhanced U.S.-Israel mutually beneficial, win-win
defense and commercial cooperation.
Yoram Ettinger
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=4731
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
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