WarSclerotic

The disintegration of the UN peacekeeping forces in the Golan shows why Israel cannot rely on international forces for its security, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told the cabinet at the outset of its weekly meeting on Sunday.

Netanyahu was referring to Austria’s decision last week to pull out its 380 troops from the 1,000-strong UN Disengagement Observer  Force (UNDOF) on the Israel-Syria border.

While international forces can be part of agreements, they can not be what Israel relies upon for its security, Netanyahu said. He added that he will raise this in his talks this week with US Secretary of State John Kerry.

Kerry’s recent efforts to restart Israeli-Palestinian diplomatic talks has revived the idea that international forces may be able to replace withdrawing IDF forces in the Jordan Valley or elsewhere as part of a peace agreement.

Netanyahu said that any agreement will be based on a de-militarized Palestinian state that will recognize Israel as the national home of the Jewish people, and on “concrete” security arrangements that are based on an IDF presence.

Netanyahu said that he spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin again on Friday, the third time in a month, about what the situation in Syria that Netanyahu said was getting more complicated by the day.

Netanyahu reiterated what he has said numerous times in the past, that Israel will not interfere in the Syrian civil war “as long as the fire is not directed at us.”

In an apparent reference to coalition difficulties that emerged last week, Netanyahu said that in order to face the Syrian and Palestinian challenges, as well as other that are waiting on the threshold, the government needed to work as one unit.

After ticking off a number of initiatives the new government has pushed through, including passing a budget and framework for equalizing military service, Netanyahu said the government was elected to focus on “doing big things, and not on petty politics – and that is what we shall do.”