As long as the Arabs feel that there is the least hope of getting rid of us, they will refuse to give up this hope in return for either kind words or for bread and butter, because they are not a rabble, but a living people. And when a living people yields in matters of such a vital character it is only when there is no longer any hope of getting rid of us, because they can make no breach in the iron wall.
— Vladomir Jabotinsky, “The Iron Wall” (1923)

One week ago, today, the Zionist world celebrated as we received news of the historic rapprochement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.

In many ways, this development transpired in accordance with the principles set forth by Vladomir Jabotinsky, the Revisionist Zionist who argued for creating an “Iron Wall,” an irresistible presence that would force Israel’s neighbors to negotiate. Though extremely controversial, Jabotinsky submitted that he was the sole Zionist thinker to treat the Arab denizens of Palestine with dignity, by assuming that they had their own national aspirations and, thus, would not concede to the Zionist’s national aspirations unless no other choice existed.

Disciples of Jabotinsky, from Menachem Begin to Bibi Netanyahu, have suggested that Israel can only win peace by striving to make the status quo so unpalatable that peace becomes a preferable option. In this case, the credible threat of partial annexation of the West Bank served as the “Iron Wall,” designed to force Israel’s neighbors to the negotiating table.

As unpleasant as Jabotinsky’s theories may sound, history has lent them credibility. Begin secured the first peace treaty between Israel and a neighboring Arab country through the return of the Sinai, following the Six-Day War. Peace was won with Jordan when Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin warned the Jordanians that they stood to lose out once the Israelis concluded the still elusive settlement with the Palestinians following the Oslo Accords. And the credible threat of annexation brought the UAE to the bargaining table.

Of course, we cannot ignore the politics at play within Israeli society. Often, an aggressive leader can make domestic populations more likely to embrace peace with a traditional foe, giving us the modern maxim, “Only Nixon could go to China.” Nor can we ignore the politics now at play within the Arab world, which have led many Arab nations to publicly abandon their traditional support for the Palestinian cause.

Nor can we ignore that though increasing pressure has paid dividends with Israel’s neighbors, little has been achieved with the Palestinians through the application of the “Iron Wall.”

However, Jabotinsky’s writings may be of assistance, here, as well. For though Jabotinsky’s “Iron Wall” may have brought Egypt, Jordan, and the UAE to the negotiating table, only by treating their neighbors with the individual and national dignity they deserved, as Jabotinsky also taught, were the Israelis able to secure peace.

Thus do we pray, that by wedding strength with dignity and understanding, Israel will find lasting peace with its neighbors in the days to come.

— Rabbi Josh Knobel