Pompeo Visit to Israel Must Be Important for Logistical Nightmare

Although the steadfastness and strength of the U.S.-Israel relationship is not a secret, the lengths Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will go to in order to make a lightning visit to the Jewish state this week is the stuff of which conspiracy theories are made. What, many are asking, is it that can’t be accomplished in a Zoom Meeting rather than going through the myriad of precautions and procedures associated with life in the coronavirus age, from the trip’s brevity to “frequent medical testing” to masks, and so on. The universal belief is that the SecState is bringing final word on just what can or cannot be expected in the way of the U.S. having Israel’s back when the Jewish state formally annexes land conquered in the 1967 war that the Palestinians claim for their state-in-waiting. The issue is one of the most complex the Trump administration has dealt with in the region – so much so that even many ideologically in favor of the move fail to support it out of consideration for what is expected to be a diplomatic tsunami led by the European nations, none of whom will be aligning with the Washington-Jerusalem position. In that regard, it is expected that the mass outpouring will more than make up for the reaction that was expected but never manifest when President Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and moved the American Embassy there. The Pompeo visit will be the first time the SecState has the opportunity to review the landscape with both Prime Minister Netanyahu and his political foe-turned-successor Benny Gantz on the same team. It’s not a stretch to believe that Secretary Pompeo will also be clear regarding how Israel can say, “Thank you.”