I'm an ardent Zionist. But Israel's annexation makes no sense.

This is a tough time to be a cheerleader for the U.S.-Israel relationship. It is not easy to watch as our close partner — with the reckless encouragement of the White House — considers annexing parts of the West Bank, a policy that would imperil both countries’ interests despite the clear availability of better alternatives.

I am proud of my advocacy for the bond between these two nations, which has spanned my whole career as a scholar and think tank director. I argued publicly that the United States should move its embassy to Jerusalem. I opposed the Iran nuclear deal and urged senators to vote against that flawed agreement. I believe bolstering Israel advances U.S. interests, strengthening a pro-American ally in the world’s most turbulent region.

And yet even to an ardent proponent of U.S.-Israel cooperation, this example of it defies all logic. For Washington, it kills whatever slim chance remains for President Trump’s peace plan. For Palestinians, it validates the claim that Israel just wants territorial expansion. For Jerusalem, it abandons a relatively secure and surprisingly durable status quo for no real reason. If the U.S. and Israeli governments can’t convince even me of the logic here, there is no hope they will convince others that annexation is anything but a domestic political maneuver fueled by the growing electoral power of Israel’s ideologically motivated settlement movement, devoid of strategic rationale.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/im-an-ardent-zionist-but-israels-annexation-makes-no-sense/2020/06/25/f949e6a4-b59e-11ea-a8da-693df3d7674a_story.html

A must read.