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The Jordan Valley: Israel's Eastern Security Border

(Israel Hayom) Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Uzi Dayan - Borders are a main component of any framework deal between Israel and the Palestinians, and Secretary of State Kerry knows that Israel has a right to defensible borders. Former U.S. President George W. Bush's letter of recognition in 2004 discussed America's commitment to "secure, defensible borders, and to preserve and strengthen Israel's capability to deter and defend itself, by itself, against any threat or possible combination of threats." Israel is not weak, but it is small and narrow and therefore vulnerable: 70% of its population and 80% of its industrial manufacturing capabilities are concentrated along a narrow coastal plain controlled from the east by the hills of the West Bank. In Jordan there are 1.2 million Syrian refugees. There are now also tens of thousands of global jihadist terrorists in the region. So Israel cannot ignore the possibility that an eastern front can emerge. Israel must maintain an anti-terrorism buffer. We see what happened in Gaza and Lebanon after Israeli forces withdrew. Only an Israeli presence along the eastern side of the West Bank will facilitate the implementation of a demilitarized Palestinian entity. The Jordan Valley provides Israel with the minimum vital strategic depth to allow the fight against terrorism to be effective. There is no technological system that can replace such a defensive buffer. Moreover, Israel cannot trust foreign forces to protect Israelis, since they would be the first to retreat during a crisis. The entire Jordan Valley, under complete Israeli control, is Israel's eastern security border. The writer served as IDF Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Chairman of Israel's National Security Council, and National Security Adviser to the Prime Minister.
2014-01-02 00:00:00
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