The United States government on Wednesday announced that it was admitting Israel into the visa waiver program that would allow visa-free entry by citizens from the Middle Eastern country starting on Nov. 30.
Admission into the U.S. Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is considered to be a major victory for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The decision, which the Middle Eastern country's Foreign Ministry said was expected, comes at a time when relations between the religious-nationalist government and Washington have been strained.
Visa Waiver Program
This is primarily due to Netanyahu's judiciary overhaul plan and policies that would affect Palestinians. The latter have also staged protests against Israel's entry into the waiver program, arguing that Israel, for decades, has been responsible for discriminating against Arab Americans and harassing them at its borders.
On Wednesday, four Democratic U.S. senators, including Chris Van Hollen, said that Israel has failed to meet the requirement of treating all American travelers equally. On the other hand, U.S. Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said that the announcement further "strengthens the security, economic, and people-to-people ties between the U.S. and Israel, as per Reuters.
With the admission of Israel into the program, Palestinian-Americans who are living in the West Bank or living in the United States can now enter Israel visa-free. They can also fly in and out of Ben Gurion Airport. Officials from the U.S. said that the decision reduces barriers to travel for these Americans.
Prime Minister Netanyahu praised the announcement and called it a "significant and joyous moment for all Israeli citizens." Washington requires countries to meet several requirements for admission to the program that allows visitors to stay up to 90 days without a visa.
These include requirements on issues such as counterterrorism, law enforcement, immigration enforcement, document security, and border management. Additionally, they need to treat all U.S. travelers equally, which means that Israel must allow free passage for Palestinian Americans at Ben Gurion airport.
Israel's Treatment of Palestinians
The DHS is the one that manages the VWP, which currently includes 40 different countries. Israel's admission, which officials expected to come before a deadline set on Sept. 30, hinged on its treatment of Palestinian-Americans, according to CNN.
Officials claim that those issues have already been settled but a group of 15 Democratic senators urged Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier this month to not nominate Israel for the program. An administration official said that the Middle Eastern country's designation into the program will help both countries meet key national security goals.
The development represents a significant change in Israel's longstanding security paradigm of profiling and restricting the entry of Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim visitors. Such measures were implemented due to airline hijackings five decades ago, ongoing hostilities against Israel in the region, and Israeli efforts to prevent an influx of Palestinians to the Jewish state.
The decision also resolves recent concerns, like enforcing stricter rules on granting Israeli passports to new immigrants. This effectively allows the visa-waiver program to prevent an influx of Russians into the U.S., said NPR.
