The Difference Between Last Year's Flotilla And #Flotilla2

Evelyn Gordon points out that for all of the criticism of Israel's response to last year's Flotilla, it was the response to last year's flotilla that made Israel's strategy against the Flotilla such a success:

With diplomatic efforts to stop this year’s flotilla to Gaza a seeming success, a new myth has arisen: The success of this year’s effort proves Israel could also have stopped last year’s flotilla without bloodshed had it only been a bit smarter. Max implied as much here; Haaretz said it openly. But the sorry truth is Israel’s diplomatic efforts succeeded this time only because of its willingness to use deadly force last year.

It isn't that this years success was could have worked last year. Max implied as much here; Haaretz said it openly. But the sorry truth is Israel’s diplomatic efforts succeeded this time only because of its willingness to use deadly force last year.

Instead the key is that unlike last year, this time around the democratic countries had an excuse to intervene. Recall that Greece said that reason it was holding back the Flotilla was because of the danger. That is something that Greece could not really have said last year. The US State Department gave a similar reason.

In fact, Greece's assistance with the flotilla points to the beginning a new trend: Israel is gaining new friends in the Balkans:

Buoyed by Greece's grounding of international activists who had tried to sail to blockaded Gaza, Netanyahu pointed to a growing group of central and east European countries close to the United States that were supporting the Israelis in U.N. and EU forums.
"We are finding new partnerships, new alliances in places where we had once invested little time, energy and resources," he told Reuters at the start of a visit to Romania and Bulgaria.
"We have a strategy, and while there is all this talk of Israel being isolated, these countries are deeply eager to develop ties. Their opinion of us is very favorable. They are taking a hard look at their interests and understand that Israel can help advance them."

Netanyanhu says the reason is that countries in that are lived under tyranny till fairly recently and are thus more skeptical and more appreciative of democracies.

Analysts say the reason is "realpolitik and historical self-regard."

An example of this is the Czech Republic:

Netanyahu said he had been surprised on a visit to the Czech Republic that his hosts "did not have to be convinced" regarding Israel's peacemaking terms, though these are often questioned in many western European capitals.
"They get it. They experienced the dictatorial mind, and they understand what it means to be framed," said Netanyahu, who has long insisted that the reason peace remains elusive is the Palestinians' refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state.

Netanyahu went so far as to say that relations with Russia were good and he even had reason to hope that ties with Turkey could be mended.

Of course that does not presage a major turnaround in relations globally, but it is a start.

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