Trump’s “America First” Foreign Policy Puts Israel Last
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Trump’s “America First” Foreign Policy Puts Israel Last
By Halie Soifer
Next week, Donald Trump will embark on his first major foreign trip of his second term. Unlike previous presidents, who typically visit Canada or Mexico on their first foreign trip, Trump will visit Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Qatar, where just last week, the Trump Organization struck a large real estate deal with a Qatari government-owned firm.
With evidence suggesting that Trump is using the presidency for his personal gain, one should not overlook what has been lost in America’s approach to the Middle East since Trump reentered the White House. Trump’s choice not to visit Israel on his trip to the region, despite Israeli requests that he do so, demonstrates that he’s neglecting Israel’s interests for his own.
Recent U.S. negotiations with the Houthis, Iran, and Saudi Arabia revealed daylight between Trump and Israel. The Israeli government has been excluded from and surprised by these talks, and Israel’s security interests have been subordinated to Trump’s clear desire to strike regional deals.
Additionally, Trump appears to be walking away from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and the hostages who remain languishing in tunnels. Trump announced an arbitrary deadline of May 15 for the resumption of a ceasefire while making no effort to help bring one about. He also provided a green light to the Israeli far-right to “flatten” Gaza if there’s no agreement by next week, which would pose grave humanitarian, military, and security repercussions for Israel and civilians in Gaza.
Despite the false perception that Trump is an ally of Israel, it has become increasingly clear that Trump’s “America First” foreign policy does not prioritize Israel.
TRUMP’S PRO-ISRAEL CHARADE
For far too long, some mistakenly believed that Donald Trump would be an unwavering ally of Israel. Perhaps it was because Trump moved the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which Trump revealed he did for transactional political purposes when, two years later, he asserted he moved the U.S. Embassy “for the evangelicals.” The perception that Trump was a genuine supporter of Israel should have ended there, but unfortunately, the charade continued.
In 2024, Trump’s former National Security Advisor John Bolton warned that “Trump’s support for Israel in the first term is not guaranteed in the second term, because Trump’s positions are made on the basis of what’s good for Donald Trump, not on some coherent theory of national security.”
More than 100 days into Trump’s second term, Bolton’s words have proven prophetic. Trump’s record on Israel reveals no clear strategy other than disdain for dealing with the ongoing conflict in Gaza, a desire to tie Israel’s hands with regard to Iran, and overlooking Israel’s security interests in order to focus on his own near-term “wins” and deals.
TAKING THE WORD OF THE HOUTHIS
The most recent example of daylight between the U.S. and Israel occurred earlier this week when Trump announced – 51 days after pledging to use “overwhelming lethal force” against Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists – that he would “honor” the Houthis’ pledge that they “don’t want to fight anymore.” Naively, Trump declared about the Iranian proxy force: “They just don’t want to fight…we will take their word.”
Trump’s decision to reach a bilateral truce with the Houthis surprised Israel, which just two days before experienced a Houthi missile strike on the grounds of Ben Gurion Airport. Since October 7, 2023, the Houthis have consistently fired missiles at Israel, and the Houthis made clear their attacks on Israel will not end with this new U.S. truce. The Houthis’ “word” apparently didn’t include any pledge to stop targeting Israel; it likely wasn’t even raised in U.S. negotiations with the Houthis brokered by Oman.
When asked in the Oval Office whether the Houthis will continue to strike Israel, Trump answered: “I don’t know about that frankly, but I know one thing: They want nothing to do with us,” once again demonstrating that Israel’s security interests are simply not his priority. Trump’s Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, defensively clarified that “the U.S. isn’t required to get permission from Israel” to cut a deal with the Houthis and specified that the U.S. will only respond to Houthi attacks on Israel if Americans are hurt.
These developments reveal a hard truth: When developing his policy in the Middle East, including toward an Iranian-backed terrorist group, Donald Trump is not prioritizing Israel’s interests or security. Immediately after Trump struck this deal with the Houthis, Prime Minister Netanyahu, recognizing this harsh reality, vowed that Israel will “defend ourselves alone.”
NO NORMALIZATION WITH SAUDI ARABIA
When Donald Trump visited Saudi Arabia on the first foreign trip of his first term, he was fascinated by a large glowing orb. This time, his focus in Saudi Arabia will be on a bilateral energy and defense agreement. While efforts have been made for years to reach a larger agreement that would include the normalization of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel, it appears that a deal between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia no longer includes Israel.
Saudi Arabia is seeking a civil nuclear agreement with the U.S., as well as arms sales, and apparently, the resumption of the war in Gaza has made it harder for the Saudis to normalize ties with Israel. Instead of pushing for such an agreement, as the Biden administration did for years, Trump capitulated and is willing to accept a lesser deal. Despite reaching the Abraham Accords in Trump’s first term, normalization between Israel and its neighbors has now taken a back seat in his second term.
This trajectory is causing concern among U.S. supporters of Israel, including Republican Senator Lindsay Graham, who yesterday tweeted that he “will never support a defense agreement with Saudi Arabia or other elements of a proposed deal that does not include normalizing the relationship with Israel as a part of the package.” Trump doesn’t see it the same way; he appears willing to strike a deal with the Saudis that has nothing to do with Israel.
“AMERICA FIRST” MEANS ISRAEL LAST
Senator Graham isn’t the only member of Congress who’s concerned. Earlier today, Senator Chris Coons led a group of 25 Democratic senators in sending a letter to President Trump in advance of his trip, imploring him to help bring about a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that would secure the immediate release of all remaining hostages and work toward the creation of a security force backed by Arab partners to administer Gaza without Hamas.
This letter emphasizes a clear vacuum of American leadership that has emerged regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. While Trump never demonstrated an interest in a two-state solution, he now appears, at best, disinterested in dealing with the situation in Gaza to the point of allowing the Israeli far-right to “flatten” and reoccupy the territory. This isn’t a strategy – it’s neglect, and it will not end well for Israel or the hostages.
Israel was also a cause of the rift between Trump and former National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, who was fired last week due to differences with Trump that reportedly included Waltz’s close coordination with Israel on Iran. While Trump might wind up with a deal with Iran that may look something like the nuclear agreement he unilaterally abandoned in his first term, Waltz apparently was speaking with Israel about their interest in striking Iranian nuclear facilities, which Trump reportedly “waved off” last month.
With Waltz now subjugated to a lesser role in the Trump White House, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was set to visit Israel next week in conjunction with Trump’s visit. In yet another surprise for the Israelis, Hegseth just canceled his trip with no clear explanation, demonstrating even more daylight with Israel.
TRUMP FIRST, ABOVE ALL ELSE
Last year, Trump had the audacity to claim that Israel’s very future relied on him being elected president. In the only presidential debate, Trump said that “Israel won’t exist” in a few years if he wasn’t elected. Through fear-mongering, including of American Jews, he got his way. Now that he’s in the White House, Trump’s rhetorical support of Israel appears to have been no more than empty words.
Trump’s “America First” foreign policy is predicated on one clear guiding principle – it’s Donald Trump first and above all else, including America’s longstanding security commitment to Israel.