Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu (L.) is known to value the advice of President Shimon Peres.

It’s no secret that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has maintained extremely close ties with President Shimon Peres. The two meet at least once a week, and have made it clear on more than one occasion that they’re on the same page when it comes to the peace process.

Pundits are speculating that Peres is behind a move to cobble together a national unity government. In private conversations with senior political figures and party leaders over the past few weeks, he has been hinting that Netanyahu cannot advance the peace process with the present coalition, which is controlled by the right wing. To move forward, Peres has said, Netanyahu will have to bring Kadima into his government.

According to Haaretz columnist Yossi Verter, Peres is convinced that Netanyahu is interested in taking historic steps vis-a-vis the Palestinians. The president said he has faith in the prime minister’s intentions and capabilities, and believes Netanyahu wants to move forward but can’t because of pressure from his right flank. In order to make history, Peres said, the prime minister must bring in Kadima.

Peres has expressed concern over the prospect of a sharp decline in Israel’s international standing if the current diplomatic stalemate continues, Verter adds. Bringing Kadima into the coalition, the president believes, will enable Netanyahu to achieve a breakthrough in the peace process, and will improve Israel’s global standing. So far, Peres’ efforts have been futile.

Faithful to the Peace Process

While Peres and Netanyahu have much in common, it’s important to clarify exactly where Peres’ loyalties lie. He’s not faithful to the prime minister as much as he is to the peace process.

So, while PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas continued to refuse to meet with Netanyahu, and barely gave his agreement to hold indirect talks with him via American mediation, he had no problem agreeing to meet with Peres. A Rome meeting was arranged by high-level contacts from both sides - behind Netanyahu’s back and without having notified the Prime Minister’s Office.

The efforts were first reported by the Italian daily Corriere della Serra following a press conference given by senior Palestinian and Italian officials in Rome.

The person behind the summit drive was Uri Savir, president of the Peres Center for Peace, one of the architects of the Oslo accords, who served as director general of the Foreign Ministry when Peres was foreign minister. Savir had been trying to arrange the summit for months, and a few weeks ago Peres agreed. Savir then told Rome Mayor Gianni Alemanno that if Abbas agreed, Peres would be happy to hold a summit with him in that city, at which the two leaders would launch a new international drive for peace.

When Alemanno’s office and that of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi contacted the Israeli Embassy to make the final arrangements, the embassy staff responded that they knew nothing about the meeting. Indeed, the President’s Residence had never informed anyone in the Prime Minister’s Office about the proposed summit. Needless to say, when Netanyahu’s staff finally learned of it from the Italian media reports, they were furious.

The President’s Residence responded that “as of now, the president does not intend to travel to Italy, and no meeting has been scheduled for him with Abbas. The president has said more than once that he would be happy to help advance peace between Israel and the Palestinians, and would respond favorably to any initiative based on the principle of dialogue between the parties. But as of today, no summit or meeting between the parties has been set. If circumstances change, the president will inform the prime minister of his decision and will coordinate all future meetings or trips with him. The president’s political adviser has made it clear to our ambassador in Rome that as of now, we cannot confirm Peres’ arrival.”

The Quartet That Runs the Country

Forget the “Forum of Seven” that is supposed to be running the country. Those in the know claim that the real power lies in the hands of four individuals: Netanyahu, Peres, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, and IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi, and not necessarily in that order.

According to Maariv columnist Ben Caspit, the “quartet” is split on the question of how to deal with Iran. In one corner we have Netanyahu and Barak, and in the other, Peres and Ashkenazi. In recent months, Netanyahu and Barak have grown close, due to mutual need: Netanyahu knows that he can’t attack Iran without Barak, the man who gives his coalition legitimacy in the global arena; and Barak, for all his purported concern about the lack of progress in negotiations with the Palestinians, cares only about staying on as head of the Defense Ministry.

Both Netanyahu and Barak see the military option against Iran as very much on the table. Contrary to his earlier over-cautiousness, Barak is now taking a decidedly aggressive stance.

This brings us to the Peres and Ashkenazi, who oppose taking on such a mission alone. They believe that Israel must first allow the option of sanctions to play itself out, after which, if necessary, the world will deal the Iranians a collective military blow. According to the Peres/Ashkenazi doctrine, Israel must stand to the side, and let the world take the lead.

Needless to say, Netanayhu and Barak won’t be able to finagle a military strike against Iran without the full support of the IDF chief of staff. Constitutionally, it might be possible, but practically speaking, nothing can happen without wall-to-wall support.

Down and Out in the Opposition

Back to the idea of a national unity government; with the way Kadima leader Tzipi Livni has been talking lately, it appears to be completely out of reach. Just last week, Livni slammed the prime minister, calling on him to support Police Commissioner Dudi Cohen in the face of criticism leveled by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who is under investigation by police for corruption.

“I asked myself, who is supposed to defend law-enforcement officials in Israel?” Livni said. “I am giving all the necessary support, but Mr. Prime Minister, you also need to do this, because this is happening in your yard and you bear responsibility for everything that’s happening.

“You are responsible for the crime in the streets and the inability to cope with it. You are the prime minister; it is time to act like a prime minister. Do what is right and give support to those who need it.”

Livni’s speech was part of a Knesset session entitled “Israel under the leadership of Netanyahu. Where is it going?” marking the first anniversary of Netanyahu’s government.

“You worked hard to get to that seat. You waited, you sat in the opposition, you made crafty plans,” Livni said. “Surely you had an idea of where you wanted to lead the country. But nothing.”

Livni also lamented the absence of negotiations with the Palestinians. “Since you took control, Israel has become a pariah country in the world,” she told the prime minister.

For all her tough talk, though, the opposition hasn’t really risen above itself. Here and there an opposition member will go up to the podium and shrei gevalt, but it’s nothing that needs to be taken too seriously.

Kadima, with 28 seats, one more than the Likud, is the largest opposition party in over a decade. It was born to be a ruling party. Livni’s refusal last year to agree to Netanyahu’s terms for a national unity government earned her points for toughness, but, in the long run, is causing the party to self-destruct.

Tachlis, Kadima has been taking a beating. From day one, almost, it has been on the brink of a split. Instead of pushing the government to the wall through the passage of private bills, Kadima finds itself time and again divided over one bill or another. Some of its MKs are negotiating to defect to the coalition, and the party’s second-in-command, Shaul Mofaz, is constantly eating away at Livni’s authority and threatening to bolt the party.

To add insult to injury, five Kadima MKs took part in the Land of Israel Lobby, established by the heads of the right wing in the Knesset, and considered too extreme even for traditional right-wingers Michael Eitan and Dan Meridor.

All in all, Livni’s performance as opposition leader has been wanting. Kadima didn’t even manage to exploit the split in the Labor party to its advantage. It’s no coincidence that Ofir Pines-Paz left the Labor party and Yuli Tamir is on her way out. They understood that Kadima wasn’t leading the opposition anywhere.

In another example of faulty leadership, Livni takes pot shots at Netanyahu’s coalition partners - who could theoretically be her partners in a future government under her leadership. By contrast, when Netanyahu served as opposition leader during former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s term, he was careful to focus only on the prime minister and the government’s policies. Bibi never mocked his potential coalition partners; he always thought one step ahead.

Under Livni, Kadima has become more of a protest movement than an opposition party.

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