Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
In Blessing Annexation, Trump Erodes an International Norm
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
February 4, 2020

Share

Annexation, at its heart, is a byproduct of conflict. Almost never is it an act of peace, though it has been cast that way at times throughout human history.
Certainly not under international law, which describes it as the forcible acquisition of territory by one state at the expense of another. It often formalizes military occupation. The United Nations made it illegal after World War II.

The Palestinians view the settlements in the West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem — territories seized by Israel in the 1967 war — as a major obstacle to peace. That position is held by much of the international community, which views the settlements as illegal.
Israel is poised to annex a vast swath of the occupied West Bank with the blessing of President Donald Trump’s Mideast plan, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his hawkish supporters have hailed as a historic achievement. The initiative has infuriated the Palestinians, who see their aspirations for a viable independent state in danger of being bitterly extinguished.
The plan would allow Israel to keep all its Jewish settlements in the West Bank, where over 460,000 Israelis reside, as well as the strategic Jordan Valley. As for the rest of the West Bank, “the Israeli military will continue to control the entire territory,” Netanyahu proudly announced at the White House when the plan was unveiled last month.
The Palestinians view the settlements in the West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem — territories seized by Israel in the 1967 war — as a major obstacle to peace. That position is held by much of the international community, which views the settlements as illegal.
The Trump plan seems to brush aside international law, effectively saying Israel is a special case.
It adopts the Israeli position that the territories were seized in a “defensive war” in 1967 and that Israel has “valid legal and historical claims” to them, which is widely disputed.
Israeli law allows the government to extend sovereignty over any part of the British-ruled Palestine Mandate, which included what is now Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, and where the British had promised to establish a home for the Jewish people, without specifying its boundaries.
Photo of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem's Old city
FILE – This July 9, 2004 file photo shows the golden shrine of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem’s Old city can be seen behind a section made of concrete walls of the controversial separation barrier Israel is building in the village of Abu Dis in the outskirts of Jerusalem. In the 1948 war surrounding Israel’s creation, Egyptian forces took control of the Gaza Strip and Jordan took over the West Bank and east Jerusalem. Israel captured the territories when it launched a surprise attack in 1967 at a time of soaring tensions with its hostile Arab neighbors. (AP Photo/Enric Marti, File)

‘Annexation Has a Negative Aura’

In the 1948 war surrounding Israel’s creation, Egyptian forces took control of the Gaza Strip and Jordan took over the West Bank and east Jerusalem. Israel captured the territories when it launched a surprise attack in 1967 at a time of soaring tensions with its Arab neighbors. Today most of the international community views the West Bank and east Jerusalem as occupied Palestinian territory.

“Annexation has a negative aura to it because it’s illegal.” — Amichai Cohen, a legal expert at the Israel Democracy Institute, a non-partisan think tank
Israel’s claim that it has the right to territory in the West Bank because of the Palestine Mandate is “simply a way to try to avoid a confrontation with the international community,” said Amichai Cohen, a legal expert at the Israel Democracy Institute, a non-partisan think tank.
“Annexation has a negative aura to it because it’s illegal,” he said.
It wouldn’t be the first time Israel has annexed territory over international objections. It annexed east Jerusalem shortly after seizing it, claiming the entire city as its unified capital. In 1981 it annexed the Golan Heights, which it had captured from Syria in the 1967 war. The Syrian leadership has vowed for more than 50 years that it will recapture the Golan, but is not in any position to do so militarily. The Trump administration has endorsed both annexations, breaking with decades of U.S. policy.
The Trump plan gives Israel permission to immediately annex territory, but Israel’s race to act on it faces legal and political obstacles, including an apparent push for restraint from the White House.
Globally, opprobrium may rain down on Israel in varying degrees for defying accepted international laws if it proceeds with annexation. The International Criminal Court was already preparing to launch a war crimes probe of Israel’s settlement policies.
Here’s a look at some of the most striking cases of annexation and how they have lasted or been reversed.

Russia’s Annexation of Crimea

Russia’s annexation of the Crimea region of Ukraine in March 2014 marked the climax of President Vladimir Putin’s quest to restore Moscow’s influence over its neighbors and reverse decades of perceived humiliation at the hands of the West. The move bolstered Putin’s approval ratings but triggered U.S. and European sanctions.
It came in response to the overthrow of a pro-Russian leader in popular protests, which Putin said were fomented by hostile Western nations. Pro-Russian activists staged rallies in Crimea’s capital, Simferopol, and Russian special forces swept in to take control of strategic locations across the Black Sea peninsula. A referendum on joining Russia later passed with 97% support.
Two days later, Putin signed a document ratifying it, extolling Crimea’s role in Russian history and its importance as the home of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.

Photo of President Vladimir Putin attending a parade marking the Victory Day in Sevastopol, Crimea
FILE – In this May 9, 2014 file photo, Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a parade marking the Victory Day in Sevastopol, Crimea. Russia’s annexation of the Crimea region of Ukraine in March 2014 marked the climax of President Vladimir Putin’s quest to restore Moscow’s influence over its neighbors and reverse decades of perceived humiliation at the hands of the West. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev, File)

Saddam Hussein’s Invasion of Kuwait

The Iraqi leader’s army rolled into his tiny Gulf neighbor in August 1990, deposed the Kuwaiti royal family, who fled to Saudi Arabia, and declared the country Iraq’s 19th province. Saddam argued Kuwait had always been part of Iraq and had only been separated due to the vagaries of British imperialism. But he was really after Kuwait’s vast oil reserves.
Kuwait had been pressuring Saddam to pay back loans taken out during Iraq’s ruinous eight-year war with Iran, which he said was fought in part to protect his wealthy Gulf neighbors. He urged his countrymen to ransack the small kingdom, with family members leading much of the pillaging.
President George Bush launched Desert Storm in 1991, driving the Iraqis out of Kuwait and crushing Saddam’s army while leaving him in power. Shiite and Kurdish uprisings were left unsupported after initial encouragement from Washington and ruthlessly put down by the dictator. The U.S.-led invasion in 2003 overthrew Saddam, who was tried and executed three years later.

Photo of Iraqi soldiers getting off the back of a troop carrier along the beachfront area in Kuwait City in 1990
FILE – In this Aug. 4, 1990 file photo, Iraqi soldiers get off the back of a troop carrier along the beachfront area in Kuwait City, two days after the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. Saddam Hussein’s army rolled into his tiny Gulf neighbor in August 1990, deposed the Kuwaiti royal family, who fled to Saudi Arabia, and declared the country Iraq’s 19th province. (AP Photo/Stephanie McGehee, File)

Western Appeasement of Nazi Germany

In 1938, a year before the outbreak of the Second World War, Nazi Germany annexed large swaths of territory in central Europe with Western acquiescence — the now widely derided policy of appeasement. The Nazis annexed Austria in what was known as the Anschluss, or joining, and held a referendum that passed with 100% approval. They then annexed the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia in the now-infamous Munich agreement negotiated with British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.
Adolf Hitler had justified annexation — which was forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles that ended World War I — by saying he was only interested in gathering German-speaking peoples into a single nation-state. That lie was soon exposed by his invasion of Poland the following year, which sparked World War II.
After the Nazis’ defeat in 1945, the U.S., the Soviet Union, Britain and France occupied Austria until 1955. Czechoslovakia fell under Soviet domination as part of the eastern bloc until 1989.

Photo of German troops reaching Vienna in 1938
FILE- In this March 24, 1938, file photo, German troops reach Vienna, Austria shortly after the annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany. A new survey released on Thursday, May 2, 2019, has found that many Austrians lack basic knowledge of the Nazi genocide, even though the notorious Mauthausen concentration camp was just outside of the city of Linz, and some of the key perpetrators of the Holocaust were Austrian. (AP Photo)

Imperial Japan and Korea

Japan formally annexed Korea in 1910 and subjected it to brutal occupation until its defeat in World War II, a period Koreans still remember with deep acrimony. Japan subjugated the population and exploited the country as a colony. During World War II, the Japanese military forced tens of thousands of Korean women into sexual slavery in front-line brothels. The treatment of the euphemistically named “comfort women” remains a major source of tension between South Korea and Japan. Under a 2015 settlement, Japan apologized and agreed to pay some $8 million in compensation, but victims and their families have criticized the agreement.

Photo of protesters staging a rally demanding full compensation and an apology for wartime sex slaves from Japanese government near a statue symbolizing sex slaves
FILE – In this July 24, 2019 file photo, protesters stage a rally demanding full compensation and an apology for wartime sex slaves from Japanese government near a statue symbolizing sex slaves, in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul. Japan formally annexed Korea in 1910 and subjected it to brutal occupation until its defeat in World War II, a period Koreans still remember with deep acrimony. Japan subjugated the population and exploited the country as a colony. During World War II, the Japanese military forced tens of thousands of Korean women into sexual slavery in front-line brothels. The treatment of the euphemistically named “comfort women” remains a major source of tension between South Korea and Japan. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

Texas and Hawaii

The United States was in part brought into existence by the often violent conquest of lands that belonged to Native Americans, but it also formally annexed certain territories. The Republic of Texas was voluntarily annexed in 1845, nine years after it had seceded from Mexico. The U.S. annexed Hawaii in an 1898 treaty advanced by President William McKinley despite local opposition and mass protests. The Pacific archipelago was a U.S. territory until 1959, when Hawaii became the 50th state.

Photo of President Dwight Eisenhower with the new 50-star flag in Washington after signing a proclamation making Hawaii the 50th state of the union in 1959
FILE – In this Aug. 21, 1959 file photo, President Dwight Eisenhower helps unfurl the new 50-star flag in Washington after signing a proclamation making Hawaii the 50th state of the union. At right is Daniel K. Inouye, Democratic congressman-elect from Hawaii. The United States was brought into existence by the often brutal conquest of lands that belonged to Native Americans, but it also formally annexed certain territories. The U.S. annexed Hawaii in an 1898 treaty advanced by President William McKinley despite local opposition and mass protests. The Pacific archipelago was a U.S. territory until 1959, when Hawaii became the 50th state. (AP Photo/Byron Rollins, File)

DON'T MISS

Demarcus Robinson’s One-Handed Catch in OT Gives Rams Win Over Seahawks

DON'T MISS

Trump, Musk and an American Masculinity Crisis

DON'T MISS

What One Tossup District Says About the Trump-Harris Battle for the Suburbs

DON'T MISS

Herbert Shines, Chargers Defense Dominates in Win Over Browns

DON'T MISS

US Confirms Reports That Iran Arrested an Iranian-American Citizen

DON'T MISS

A Vivid Trump-Harris Contrast in Campaign’s Grueling Final Days

DON'T MISS

Harris and Trump Battle to the Wire in Swing States, Times/Siena Polls Find

DON'T MISS

Israel Says It Carried out Ground Raid Into Syria, Seizing a Syrian Citizen

DON'T MISS

At 91, Willie Nelson Has a New Album Out and a Cannabis Cookbook Coming

DON'T MISS

Fresno State Bulldogs Stumble in Fourth Quarter, Suffer Narrow Loss to Hawai’i

UP NEXT

Israel Says It Carried out Ground Raid Into Syria, Seizing a Syrian Citizen

UP NEXT

Russia’s Swift March Forward in Ukraine’s East

UP NEXT

North Korea’s Long-Range Missile Test Signals Its Improved, Potential Capability to Attack US

UP NEXT

Death Toll From Spanish Floods Climbs to 205 as Shock Turns to Anger and Frustration

UP NEXT

Visalia Rollerblader Suffered Major Injuries After Being Struck by Vehicle

UP NEXT

Fresno County Man Indicted for Possessing Stolen Guns

UP NEXT

Nearly a Quarter of Lebanese Border Villages Destroyed in Israel’s Military Campaign

UP NEXT

Waves of Rocket Fire From Lebanon Hit Israel, Killing 7 in Deadliest Strikes Since Israeli Invasion

UP NEXT

At Least 95 People Die in Devastating Flash Floods in Spain

UP NEXT

On Elon Musk’s X, Dems Are an Endangered Species While GOP Goes Viral

Herbert Shines, Chargers Defense Dominates in Win Over Browns

25 mins ago

US Confirms Reports That Iran Arrested an Iranian-American Citizen

26 mins ago

A Vivid Trump-Harris Contrast in Campaign’s Grueling Final Days

31 mins ago

Harris and Trump Battle to the Wire in Swing States, Times/Siena Polls Find

35 mins ago

Israel Says It Carried out Ground Raid Into Syria, Seizing a Syrian Citizen

24 hours ago

At 91, Willie Nelson Has a New Album Out and a Cannabis Cookbook Coming

1 day ago

Fresno State Bulldogs Stumble in Fourth Quarter, Suffer Narrow Loss to Hawai’i

2 days ago

From Blue Cheese to Bacon: Peanut Butter Pairings That Will Shock You

2 days ago

Challengers Seek Seats on Tulare County Irrigation District Boards

2 days ago

Shy Pup Finds Hope with Foster Family, Evasion from Euthanasia

2 days ago

Demarcus Robinson’s One-Handed Catch in OT Gives Rams Win Over Seahawks

SEATTLE — Demarcus Robinson had the undisputed highlight for the Rams on Sunday, a one-handed, 39-yard touchdown reception in overtime that ...

5 mins ago

Rams
5 mins ago

Demarcus Robinson’s One-Handed Catch in OT Gives Rams Win Over Seahawks

10 mins ago

Trump, Musk and an American Masculinity Crisis

19 mins ago

What One Tossup District Says About the Trump-Harris Battle for the Suburbs

25 mins ago

Herbert Shines, Chargers Defense Dominates in Win Over Browns

Demonstrators walk over painted images of an American flag and an Israeli flag while marking the 45th anniversary of Iran’s takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iran, on Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. The State Department confirmed that it was looking into reports that an Iranian-American citizen had been arrested in Iran. (Arash Khamooshi/The New York Times)
26 mins ago

US Confirms Reports That Iran Arrested an Iranian-American Citizen

Harris
31 mins ago

A Vivid Trump-Harris Contrast in Campaign’s Grueling Final Days

35 mins ago

Harris and Trump Battle to the Wire in Swing States, Times/Siena Polls Find

24 hours ago

Israel Says It Carried out Ground Raid Into Syria, Seizing a Syrian Citizen

Search

Send this to a friend