<US support for Israel really didn't manifest itself until 1973>
IMO, the "sea-change" in U.S. support of Israel, from "sympathetic neutral" to "permanent alliance", happened in 1956-1958.
In 1954, the Soviets sold the Egyptians bombers and tanks. This was the start of a cycle of escalation. France sold Israel some Equalizers. In 1956, France and Israel (along with the UK), did some old-fashioned 19th-Century Gunboat Diplomacy, and tried to grab back the Suez Canal, which Nasser had stolen (nationalized is the polite term) from the Europeans. Eisenhower made them give it back, hoping to MakeNice with Nasser.
By 1958, the U.S. had decided that appeasing Nasser didn't work, as his Pan-Arabist ambitions were grandiose. So, the U.S. started selling top-of-the-line weapons to Israel. U.S. troops went to Lebanon, the Brits sent troops (back) to Jordan that year, the PanArabists got stomped, and we have tilted toward Israel ever since.
The cycle of escalation continues today. Russia sells Iran crucial technology for their nuclear program. That's suicidally short-sighted of them. Make a buck today, have mullahs with nukes on your border tomorrow. That was just as stupid as the U.S. looking the other way, when Israel got nukes around 1968. |
