ByAVI ASHKENAZI SEPTEMBER 23, 2026 11:33Updated: SEPTEMBER 23, 2026 16:22

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to travel to the United States to address the UN General Assembly on Thursday, as Israel faces growing diplomatic isolation despite the strategic leverage it could offer allies across the Middle East and Europe.

Netanyahu is expected to appear before the UN General Assembly. Usually, attending the gathering brings with it a series of meetings with heads of state, defense officials, and military leaders.

The Middle East and the Arabian Gulf are currently in the midst of war and a process of reshaping. On the surface, the US appears to be seeking to reduce its military dominance in the region. At the same time, Europe understands that it is facing a new set of threats: Russia, the Iranian threat, and growing Islamist migration that is changing Europe's demographics.

Israel has a great deal to offer Europe in dealing with each of these threats. Israel is a key player in maintaining stability in the Middle East and the Arabian Gulf.

The fact is that some of the region's strongest countries, including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and others, are facing economic and military difficulties amid aggression from Iran and the Houthis, as well as Turkey's interests in the Mediterranean, threats to the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab, and pressure on other countries.

US President Donald Trump and Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu walk together during Netanyahu's visit to Washington, February 5, 2025 (credit: Avi Ohayon/GPO)Netananyahu not meeting with Trump at UNGA, Israel facing diplomatic crisis

Under these circumstances, Netanyahu should have been among the most sought-after figures at the UN General Assembly. He should have been sitting at the Waldorf Astoria in Manhattan, with members of his staff handing out waiting numbers in the hotel lobby for meetings with him.

But the situation looks different. Even US President Donald Trump, one of Netanyahu's closest allies over the years, has indicated that he has no interest in meeting Netanyahu at this time. The absurdity is that he is, in principle, prepared to meet with Iranian officials who arrive for the UN General Assembly.

This is not a political matter. It is a genuine diplomatic crisis that directly affects the security situation. Israel's isolation could influence a series of military initiatives that were supposed to be developed.

Israel cannot rely on a cool relationship with the US superpower. It cannot build its strategy solely on a regional alliance with Cyprus and Greece in the face of the range of threats confronting it. Nor can it rely only on arms deals with Germany and other European countries.

Israel should be in a completely different position by now. The IDF's achievements over three years of war have been remarkable. But they should have been taken to the next level.

Israel's problem is that it does not truly have a functioning foreign minister, just as it does not have a full-time defense minister. Much of the Israeli government is made up of political operatives who lack diplomatic vision and strategic military thinking. It is doubtful whether many ministers have even taken courses in Middle Eastern studies.

If they had, the lobby of the Waldorf Astoria in Manhattan would likely be filled with leaders and defense officials waiting to meet Netanyahu.

Israeli submarine expected to strengthen alliance with Greece, Cyprus

On Thursday, the INS Drakon, the Israeli Navy's sixth submarine, is set to enter Israeli waters. It is the most expensive weapon system Israel has ever purchased. Its entry into service with the navy is expected to affect the balance of power, particularly against countries in the third and fourth circles surrounding Israel.

The submarine could strengthen Israel's alliance with Greece and Cyprus, and it could also provide much of what Egypt and Italy lack in confronting Turkish assertiveness over the division of economic waters in the Mediterranean and Ankara's moves with Libya to create a new regional reality.

For now, it remains unclear how two open arenas will be resolved: the confrontation between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, and the second arena between the US and Iran surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's nuclear program, and the continued survival of the ayatollah regime.

What is clear is that Israel needs a series of diplomatic moves to emerge from its isolation, and it must become a force shaping the region both diplomatically and in security terms. It must also play a dominant role in shaping European security thinking, based on the understanding that what is bad for Europe now is also bad for Israel.

Follow us on Google

---