Any hopes that US-led diplomatic efforts will succeed in reducing the escalating violence in the Middle East are being undermined by the deeply fractious relationship between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Although Biden continues to portray himself as a staunch ally of Israel, regularly defending its right to self-defence in the wake of last year’s 7 October attacks, concerns remain that the outgoing US president's strained relationship with Netanyahu is having a negative impact on diplomatic efforts to end the violence.
With Israel continuing military offensives in both Gaza and Lebanon and concerns that the Israelis are planning to launch retaliatory strikes against Iran following last week’s ballistic missile attacks against Israel, Washington is desperate to reduce hostilities in the region.
With only weeks to go before next month’s US presidential election, the Biden administration is concerned that any further escalation in hostilities in the Middle East could have a negative impact on Vice President Kamala Harris’s prospects of winning the contest for the Democrats.
Heavy criticism
The Biden administration, which has previously invested a great deal of political capital in seeking to implement a ceasefire in Gaza, has come under heavy criticism in the US for its failure to limit the impact of Israel’s devastating military offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
While Washington has constantly urged the Israelis to show restraint in their campaign to limit Hezbollah’s missile attacks against northern Israel, Netanyahu appears to have largely ignored the Biden administration’s wishes, opting instead to launch the most intensive Israeli military offensive against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon since the last major conflict with the Iranian-backed group in 2006.
