With regards to the ongoing Israeli military campaign in Gaza, the point of Benjamin Netanyahu’s supposed personal and political interests in the perpetuation of the military occupation has been raised by several analysts and journalists. Marc Champion, for example, writing for Bloomberg, highlighted the fact that the Israeli Prime Minister is currently “fighting corruption charges in court” (it being implicit that it is of course usually harder to investigate and to condemn incumbent national leaders). Netanyahu, in addition, will “face a political reckoning over Oct. 7’s security failures as soon as the war in Gaza ends.”

Thus, writes Champion, “under cover of the country’s blinding rage and deep yearning for long-term security, Netanyahu is fighting to secure his own political survival.” Champion and other analysts may or may not be spot on, with regards to Netanyahu’s motivations and calculations. The point is that personal, private and business interests (sometimes even involving shady deals) may indeed shape, to some degree, foreign policy decisions. And the issue is more outstanding in Ukraine than perhaps anywhere else.

By October 2023, the European Union (EU) and the United States had made over $160 billion (and counting) in commitments to Ukraine (including tens of billions in arms – many of which ended up in black markets, by the way). One may recall that already in 2021 Amos Hochstein was especially appointed by US President Joe Biden as the US Senior Advisor for Energy Security, with a focus, back then, on reducing the “risks” Nord Stream 2 posed, from an........

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