Why Is Truman Called The Balfour Declaration Dbq

When Harry Truman became President, the last thing on his mind was creating a viable solution to the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians. WW II had not ended in Europe, the world's first nuclear weapon was being created, and tensions were rising with the Cold War. In addition to these developing problems, few around the world saw what would be the longest lasting conflict of them all. It was this problem that Truman ultimately failed at resolving. Right before the end of World War I, Britain passed what was later to be called the Balfour Declaration. It was this document that would stir up trouble for decades to come. Then, before the start of World War II, the League of Nations entrusted Britain with the Mandate of Palestine

There were more seemingly important conflicts going on and in the short term, they were. Instead of taking a position on the topic, Truman handed all responsibility to his State Department (Judis). Not only did this send a message to American Zionists that Truman did not prioritize this problem, but it meant that Truman did not step up to his job. This would prove to be a significant problem later because his State Department and Truman did not share the same opinions on what the correct solution was. On April 20, 1945, Truman wrote in his memoirs “I had carefully read the Balfour Declaration, in which Great Britain was committed to a homeland in Palestine for the Jews. I had familiarized myself with the history of the question of a Jewish homeland and the position of the British and the Arabs. I was skeptical, as I read over the whole record up to date, about some of the views and attitudes assumed by the “striped-pants boys” - the State Department (Truman, 1965). Clearly he did not agree with what his administration wanted to do. Truman would have been happy if the UN would solve the conflict, but that was not tangible. The UN was newly formed, but more importantly, no significant proposal could get past the General Assembly or the Security Council with American support. It would be different if America was some insignificant nation. But America is one of

John F. Kennedy never got Israel to help resettle the refugees (Judis). Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan’s administrations had leaders who pushed for peace plans, but then withdrew them. Even when we took three small steps forward, those steps were weighed down with the mud. Gerald Ford’s Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, became a liaison between Israel, Syria, and Egypt, but the United States had to promise never to talk to the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) until they recognized Israel’s existence as an independent State. That promise dealt a swift blow that would hurt America’s relations with Middle East countries for years. Jimmy Carter conducted the Camp David Accords with Egypt and Israel that greatly improved relations and moved toward ending disputes between the two countries, so that was a step in the right direction (Camp).The rest of the presidents, George H.W. Bush. Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Obama, all have tried various strategies to resolve at least a part of this conflict, but none have prevailed. This appears to be what the Truman Administration has left. Tens of years have passed, yet it still feels as if this conflict had just begun. Yes, progress has been made, but the amount of time it has taken to progress far is astounding. It can be surmised that how Truman dealt with the conflict really set