From the article: The US reaction to the insults Ya’alon hurled in January at Secretary of State John Kerry, describing him as “obsessive” and “messianic,” was no less pointed. In her daily briefing at the time, Psaki’s deputy, Marie Harf, described Ya’alon’s comments as “offensive and inappropriate,” saying they were “not something we would expect from the defense minister of a close ally.” White House spokesman Jay Carney made similar comments the same day. Ya’alon has, in fact, adopted a habit of biting over and over the hand that feeds Israel with heaped helpings of defense, economic and diplomatic nourishment. He has a thing or two to learn from his cabinet colleague, Avigdor Liberman. The foreign minister has understood that as long as a right-wing Israeli politician makes sure to lavish compliments on the United States for its friendship, he can afford to ignore such values as human rights, to spit in the face of international law and to ridicule US peace efforts. While Ya’alon’s criticism of the United States was being leaked from an off-the-record conversation with a journalist and from a closed-door academic forum, Liberman was busy showcasing his plan to deprive hundreds of thousands of Arab Israelis of their citizenship, simply because of their religious and ethnic affiliation. He announced that he would oppose a freeze on settlement construction “for even one hour,” and threatened that if the government respects its commitment to Kerry and frees Palestinian prisoners who are Israeli citizens, his party would quit the ruling coalition. al-monitor/pulse/originals/2014/03/yaalon-liberman-us-administration-settlement-enterprise.html?utm_source=Al-Monitor+Newsletter+%5BEnglish%5D&utm_campaign=3beb8f0a9e-January_9_20141_8_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_28264b27a0-3beb8f0a9e-102311405
Posted on: Tue, 25 Mar 2014 14:52:36 +0000
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