“Israel ranked 8th most powerful country in the world”
Israel desperately wants to be accepted by the world community as it seeks to integrate itself into international life. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel’s “presence on the world stage,” acknowledged by US News & World Report this week when it ranked Israel as the eighth-most-powerful nation in the world, will be on full display when he goes to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. This ranking also reported that the country of Israel is perceived to be the “most religious in the world”. Here are the details of the report:
“An international survey has ranked Israel as the eighth most powerful nation in the world for the second consecutive year, narrowly ahead of Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey.
The annual survey by the US News & World Report was published during the weekend, based on the answers of more than 21,000 people from four regions.
The survey ranked 80 countries on a range of issues including power, cultural influence, economy and entrepreneurship, with the categories adding up to an overall ‘best countries’ ranking.
But in the power ranking Israel was ranked inside the top ten, behind the United States, Russia, China, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Japan, in that order. Neighbors Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were ranked 9th and 10th, with fellow Middle Eastern countries Iran and Turkey ranked 13th and 14th. …”
The Times of Israel (8th July 2018)
Such reports only serve to bolster Israel’s pride in its own achievements, but they are evidence that God’s promises relating to their return to the land are being fulfilled with absolute certainty.
Europe – “After pummeling allies, Trump ends wild Europe trip with Putin embrace”
The political chasm between Europe and the US is only widening after President Trump’s recent tour of Europe. Such behaviour will end up weaning the US away from Europe, allowing the EU to formulate its own political and defence policies with closer ties to Russia.
“HELSINKI (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump’s week-long adventure on the world stage in Europe came to a raucous conclusion in Helsinki on Monday, with American allies fuming and confused and Russian President Vladimir Putin literally smiling at his good fortune.
Trump’s trip to Belgium, Britain, and Finland was marked by his frequent taunts and threats aimed at America’s NATO allies, a sharp contrast to his unrestrained bid to curry favor with Russia despite the conclusion by U.S. intelligence agencies that Moscow meddled in the 2016 U.S. election to aid his candidacy.
Even for Trump’s high-drama, tweet-driven presidency, this was the most heavily criticized trip abroad of his 18 months in office. The only smooth sections were a tea at Windsor Castle with Queen Elizabeth – although he kept the nonagenarian monarch waiting and walked in front of her – and golfing at his own Turnberry course in Scotland.
In Brussels, Trump sowed confusion and chaos, blasting NATO allies for not contributing enough money for their own defense, then praising them for their contributions. He arrived 45 minutes late to the second day of meetings and hijacked the agenda.
In an insult aimed at German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Trump called Germany a “captive” of Moscow for its support of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia. Hours later, he said he has great relations with Merkel.
On to Britain,Trump tested the resolve of Prime Minister Theresa May in a critical week by telling a newspaper that one of her political opponents, recently resigned Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, would be a great prime minister. The bombshell interview came out just after May had rolled out the red carpet to Trump for a gala dinner.
Trump criticized the Brexit deal that she negotiated regarding Britain’s departure from the European Union, then called her a great leader who should do as she sees fit. …
‘ERRATIC CONDUCT’
On the eve of his summit with Putin, Trump added insult to injury by calling the EU a “foe” for its trade policies in a CBS interview that aired on Sunday.
That language stood in stark contrast to the scene on Monday at Finland’s presidential palace, where Trump called the Russian leader, accused by the West of all manner of grievances, a “good competitor” and “I think the word competitor is a compliment”. …
Trump left with no concrete achievements from his long-desired summit with Russia’s leader. Putin, who has been staring down American presidents since he rose to power in 2000, dismissed Trump’s concerns about Russia’s annexation of Crimea and gave vague promises to hold a dialogue about Syria and nuclear weapons.
The former KGB officer showed up late for the summit, held one-on-one talks with Trump for more than two hours and smiled and appeared to chortle when a reporter asked him whether Russia has compromising material from when then-businessman Trump visited Moscow in 2013 for the Miss Universe pageant.
At the end of the event, Trump left with a tangible gift: Putin handed him a soccer ball to mark Russia’s hosting of the World Cup. One U.S. senator suggested Trump check it for listening devices and never let it enter the White House. …”
Reuters (17th July 2018)
Middle East – “Israel and Saudi Arabia: From foes to potential friends”
There are some significant trends in relations between the Gulf Arab States and Israel. Ezekiel 38:13 says, “Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?” This indicates that the Gulf States and Yemen are first to protest Gog’s invasion and implies that their fortunes are tied to the prosperity of the Jewish State. This article highlights the growing sense of cooperation that is occurring between Saudi Arabia and Israel.
“Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman has had enough of the Palestinian leadership. “In the past 40 years, the Palestinian leadership has repeatedly missed opportunities and rejected all proposals,” he said during a meeting with several leaders of Jewish organizations in late March. “It’s time the Palestinians accept the proposals… or shut up and stop complaining”.
This isn’t the first time Saudi officials have harshly criticized the Palestinian leadership for consistently missing historic opportunities to solve the conflict, but up until now they have kept it behind closed doors.
The ties between Riyadh and Jerusalem are perceived by some of the Saudi public as a betrayal of the Palestinian interest and serve as a weapon in the hands of the regime’s opponents. The royal family in Riyadh is required, therefore, to prove that it isn’t “selling” out the Palestinian struggle to advance a normalisation with Israel.
The Palestinian issue has never been a top priority in Saudi Arabia, but it has served and still serves as a restraining and limiting factor in the Saudi regime’s attitude towards Israel.
Over the years, there have been historical crossroads in which shared interests were formed between Israel and Saudi Arabia, but they failed to develop into a dramatic change in the status of the relations due to the Saudi regime’s fear of profound criticism in the Arab world that would sabotage its public image and religious status as the protector of Islam’s holy sites.
Recently, however, as the Iranian enemy and the Islamic State (ISIS) grew stronger, Israel turned from an enemy into a potential ally in the Saudis’ eyes. Not only do the two countries share an identical perception as to the need to eradicate radical elements and stabilize the Middle East, but Israel is the only country in the world with the intentions and military ability to act against the joint enemies.
Over the years, Saudi Arabia has largely relied on its strategic alliance with the United States, but the American administration’s willingness to get involved in the Middle East’s bloody conflicts has dropped in recent years, and Saudi Arabia has basically been left without any support for its attempts to efficiently curb the Iranian influence. Under these circumstances, Israel has become a key player in changing the regional balance of power.
In addition to its intelligence and strategic abilities, Saudi Arabia sees Israel as an economic role model. As the Saudi economy undergoes a real revolution from an economy relying on oil to a productive and advanced economy, the Israeli knowledge and technology are becoming more and more attractive. …
The Saudi palace is already pressuring the Palestinian Authority to moderate its demands from Israel. Unlike in the past, Saudi Arabia has withdrawn its demand for a just solution to the Palestinian problem and is now talking about a logical solution. The Saudis, for example, no longer support the Palestinian demand for a right of return; rather, they are pursuing a solution that Israel wouldfind acceptable too.
Furthermore, Riyadh isn’t stipulating that the Israeli-Arab conflict must be solved before Saudi Arabia’s relations with Israel are normalized, but is settling for a breakthrough in the negotiations. As far as Saudi Arabia is concerned, if Israel makes gestures that convey to the Arab world that “there’s something to talk about,” like freezing settlement construction and lifting the siege on Gaza (even partially), it would be possible to reward Israel by increasing the Saudi gestures, in addition to the ones that have been made so far.
On the economic level, if the regime in Riyadh removes the economic barriers and allows the integration of Israeli components and workforce into the Saudi economy, it would have a huge contribution to the Israeli economy, especially if other Arab countries open their gates to Israeli products. …”
YNet News (3rd June 2018)