MINISTER OF STRATEGIC AFFAIRS MOSHE YA'ALON

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 000976

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/01/2019
TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER KWBG IR IS
SUBJECT: MINISTER OF STRATEGIC AFFAIRS MOSHE YA'ALON

REF: TEL AVIV 000617

Classified By: Political Counselor Marc J. Sievers for reasons 1.4 (b),
(d).


1. (C) SUMMARY. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu named Lt.
Gen. (res.) Moshe (Boogie) Ya'alon to serve as Minister of
Strategic Affairs. Ya'alon, whom pundits predicted would
serve as Defense Minister before Labor joined the governing
coalition, brings to Netanyahu's cabinet extensive military
experience. Ya'alon has served as chief of Military
Intelligence and later as Chief of Staff of the Israel
Defense Forces (IDF),and occasionally clashed with his
superiors over defense strategies. Ya'alon is a political
newcomer, but his security credentials and public stature
earned him a ministerial portfolio. In his new role, Ya'alon
will focus on coordination security, intelligence, and
diplomatic initiatives involving Iran and other strategic
threats. Ya'alon is known to have center-right views on
Iran, advocating tough diplomatic measures and declaring that
Israel maintains the option to use force to halt Iran's
nuclear program. Ya'alon also maintains hardline views on
the Middle East peace process, preferring a "bottom up"
approach to reforming Palestinian society and improving
Palestinian livelihood instead of focusing on final status
negotiations. End Summary.

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EXTENSIVE MILITARY EXPERIENCE, POLITICAL NOVICE
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2. (C) Ya'alon's extensive military career helps him bring
considerable security heft to his position as Strategic
Affairs Minister. Ya'alon enlisted in the IDF in 1968, first
serving in an airborne regiment, then serving in the elite
Sayeret Matkal unit, which he would later command. He became
director of Military Intelligence in 1995, and in 1998 was
appointed head of IDF's Central Command, the senior IDF
officer in charge of the West Bank. In September 2000, on
the eve of the Second Intifada, Ya'alon was named IDF Deputy
Chief of Staff. He became Chief of Staff in 2002 and
concluded his military service in June 2005. Ya'alon was an
outspoken military leader, clashing with then Foreign
Minister Shimon Peres in the mid-1990s over the credibility
of Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat, and running afoul of
then Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Defense Minister Shaul
Mofaz in 2005 over Ya'alon's objections to Israel's
withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank.


3. (SBU) Ya'alon had no previous political experience before
running for the Likud list ahead of the February 2009
parliamentary elections, having worked since his retirement
as a military fellow at the Washington Institute for Near
East Policy, and then as a senior fellow at the Shalem Center
in Jerusalem. Nonetheless, Netanyahu highlighted Ya'alon as
one of Likud's new stars during the campaign, calculating
that his military experience would appeal to voters concerned
about regional threats. Netanyahu had hinted that Ya'alon
would be a front-runner for the Defense Ministry post, but
Labor's late addition to the coalition meant that Labor party
chief Ehud Barak would remain in that position. Ya'alon
instead earned the title of Minister for Strategic Affairs,
which apparently entails coordinating security, intelligence
and diplomatic initiatives regarding Iran and other strategic
threats. Israeli press reported that Ya'alon's close
associates say he is satisfied with his new position because
it gives him an opportunity to work behind the scenes on
important security issues while gaining political experience
in a relatively low-profile position.

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HARDLINE VIEWS ON IRAN AND THE PALESTINIANS
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4. (C) Ya'alon's advocates a hardline position on Iran that
mostly conforms to the center-right in Israeli politics. He
argues that Iran feels that it is ascendant in the region and
that firm measures must be taken soon to reverse that trend.
He advocates a three-pronged approach of international
isolation of Iran, a strong sanctions regime, and a credible
threat of military force to get Tehran to halt its nuclear
enrichment program. Ya'alon prefers that Western powers lead
the charge, but states that Israel has the will and
capability to go it alone, if necessary.


5. (C) Ya'alon's views on the peace process with the
Palestinians evince pessimism over Palestinian willingness
and ability to reach an agreement that will ensure Israeli
security as a Jewish state. He is a strong advocate of
replacing what he calls "top down" final status talks with a
"bottom up" strategy geared toward improving economic
conditions for Palestinians while providing time for

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Palestinian security, legal, and civil institutions to
develop. Such a strategy would be followed later - perhaps
after a great lapse of time, he says - by peace. Despite
these hardline views, Ya'alon suggests that Israel can do
away with some obstacles to movement in the West Bank to
facilitate commerce, and he has acknowledged improvements in
Palestinian security performance. In the end, however, he
believes that the establishment of a stable Palestinian
society that accepts Israel as a Jewish state ought to be
seen as an indispensable condition for any significant
diplomatic progress.

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