President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will meet tomorrow at the White House, share a trait that is dangerous to both their countries: They are not intimidating. Neither other countries nor hostile organizations have any fear of them. And from there, the road is short to contempt, and thence to disastrous mistakes.
Ever since Napoleon, at the very latest, the standard description of wise strategy has been "an iron fist in a velvet glove." Diplomacy that is not backed by power, meaning both the capability and the willingness to use it, is mere rhetoric - especially when it comes to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Hamas leader Khaled Meshal, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
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