Israel Mustn’t Let Its Economic Relationship with China Threaten Its Political Relationship with America

As Arthur Herman rightly and very usefully points out in his essay in Mosaic, Israel’s growing relationship with China presents wonderful economic opportunities and serious political threats. I’m grateful to him for referring to a brief paper on the subject that I wrote earlier this year; his own analysis is far more detailed.

Among the more significant of Herman’s details is that Israel has entered into contracts to permit Chinese firms to construct a new harbor in the port of Ashdod, and also to operate the port of Haifa, the country’s largest. At Haifa, moreover, the Chinese role will be far more expansive than at Ashdod, and may—as Herman points out—endanger Israel’s military cooperation with the United States. He cites the anxieties on this subject being voiced by some former Israeli military officers. To these may be added the recent remarks of Admiral Gary Roughead, a former U.S. chief of naval operations:

The Chinese port operators will be able to monitor closely U.S. ship movements, be aware of maintenance activity, and could have access to equipment moving to and from repair sites and [could] interact freely with our crews over protracted periods. Significantly, the information systems and new infrastructure integral to the ports and the likelihood of information and electronic surveillance systems jeopardize U.S. information and cybersecurity. These factors might not preclude brief port visits [by U.S. Navy ships], but it would preclude homeporting and other protracted projects and initiatives.