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U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s brief visit to Israel on May 15 raises many questions. Pompeo met with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, and current Defense Minister and future Prime Minister Benny Gantz, to discuss “U.S. and Israeli efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as regional security issues related to Iran’s malign influence,” according to a State Department press statement.
Both the timing and structure of the visit give me a reason to believe that he did not come to Israel to discuss Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank or U.S.-Israeli cooperation on COVID-19. Rather, it was more about the “Iranian malign influence,” which seems like an urgent issue.
A few logistical aspects of the visit raise some crucial defense questions. Why did Pompeo go to Israel right away and not wait a couple of days until the new government was sworn in?
He came to Israel for a few short hours before heading right back home. His reason for not spending the night there was that he didn’t want to sleep in a hotel due to the coronavirus. For someone traveling on a plane and meeting people abroad, it hardly seems that the pandemic is one of Pompeo’s fears. Especially these days, it is fairly easy to secure a hotel room in advance, to be thoroughly disinfected, especially for someone of his level. Above all, why is the secretary of state traveling during a pandemic? Wouldn’t it have been safer and easier to talk with Netanyahu and Gantz on the phone over a secure line?
What could be so important that warrants Pompeo’s last-minute trip to Israel? I believe that he is preparing for an upcoming conflict with Iran. Here’s why.
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