The Jerusalem Post reports on growing fears in the US that Israel is failing to impress the West anymore (occupation and wars in Gaza will do that):
Nina Tannenwald, an associate research professor of international relations at Brown University’s Watson Institute for International Studies, explained that the Israeli self-perception of an underdog was no longer a widely accepted narrative outside of Israel – another factor which now must be taken into account.
“I’ve been struck by the way the Israeli self-narrative of a besieged underdog, no longer resonates to outside observers,” she said.
“That was a narrative that I think had a lot of truth earlier on in Israel’s history, but I think there’s a widespread perception that that self-narrative doesn’t resonate with the outside world, given that Israel is now the world’s 14th or 15th most powerful military country,” she continued. “And so there’s a disconnect between how Israelis see themselves in their situation, and how observers outside see it, and that is a disconnect that needs addressing.”