ABSTRACT
The US and Israel have maintained strong bilateral relations since the founding of that country in 1948. The two countries have cooperated closely in some areas, mainly regional security. With some exceptions, Democratic administrations had maintained somewhat better relations with Israel than their Republican counterparts; however, at various times the US and Israel had diverged on significant issues, particularly during the Democratic administration of Barack Obama (January 2009–January 2017), when disagreement mounted on essential topics such as Iran and the Palestinians.
Israeli leaders expressed some concerns about the Obama administration’s willingness to maintain US regional commitments, while the Obama administration questioned the compatibility of Israeli statements and actions with overall US regional and international interests.
This chapter examines the US-Israel relations during the Obama years from the perspective of a gradual shift in US relations away from Israel. Did the Obama years represent a fundamental change in US policy toward Israel, or were the effects mostly short-run with little likelihood of fundamentally altering the long-standing relationship?
