Biden’s unplanned speech, with the announced delivery on the same day, can be characterised as seeking to put a smile on a bad face. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)

US President Joe Biden’s speech on Friday, May 31, which sought to place a cover for the Israeli occupation entity’s failure to weaken the Gazan Resistance, comes in the shadow of an escalating Resistance front. On the same day, the 33rd Arab National Congress in Beirut, hosting Resistance figures from Palestine, Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq occurred, in addition to Sayed Nasrallah’s speech, in which he threatened with Resistance fighters crossing the northern border. President Assad met with the Iranian Leader Ayatollah Khamenei a day prior, and Yemen has been under relentless bombing from the American and British warplanes. The direction of Biden’s speech and the developments mentioned indicate America may have reason to believe the Resistance axis may be escalating.

Biden’s unplanned speech, with the announced delivery on the same day, can be characterised as seeking to put a smile on a bad face. It seemed to be directed towards the settler population more than the Zionist leadership, aiming to convince them that the Israeli occupation entity’s security would be intact if they accept the ceasefire proposal. Biden claimed the Gazan Resistance is ‘"no longer capable of carrying out another October 7th" as it has been weakened; this is whilst occupation soldiers are being ambushed daily and even US intelligence admits most of the Gazan Resistance’s fighting capacity and tunnels remain intact.

In fact, the occupation forces recently withdrew from Jabalia, after three weeks of having achieved nothing except the mass killing of civilians. This is despite claiming at the beginning of the year that they had destroyed the Resistance infrastructure in the area, while the Resistance continues to fire missiles from within. This is a desperate attempt from Biden to grant the Israeli occupation entity an excuse to end the war, as he spoke of the failures in achieving any victory against the Gazan Resistance through the continuation of the war. He emphasised how the continuation of the war is increasing the Israeli occupation entity’s isolation in the world, demonstrating the power of the international uprising and mass protests in weakening the American and Western position.

Biden put forward a ceasefire proposal he claimed was on Israeli terms. This proposal was viewed "positively" by the Gazan Resistance and considered by an Israeli official in the right-wing cabinet as a victory for the Resistance, according to Israeli media. In reality, the proposal is no different from what the Gazan Resistance previously accepted, with Biden urging the Israeli occupation entity "to stand with this agreement, regardless of pressure." He stated that there were those in the entity’s government coalition who would call for this war to continue indefinitely, making it clear "they want to occupy Gaza and keep fighting for years, the hostages are not a priority for them." This statement, in addition to the ceasefire proposal stipulating the return of Palestinians to their areas of Gaza, implies the Israeli occupation entity’s plan to depopulate Gaza is rejected and the American two-state solution will advance.

Biden also emphasised the need for "calm in the northern border," proving the extent to which the attacks by the Lebanese Resistance front have been effective in bleeding the occupation entity. The emphasis on America’s role in protecting the Israeli occupation entity from the Iranian missile attack is also an indication of the lack of desire for the expansion of the war fronts, a serious risk in the event of the continuation of the war.

The conclusion from Biden’s speech is that if the extreme right within the Israeli occupation entity wish to continue in the direction they are going, the Israeli occupation entity will cease to exist and to its own detriment. The larger possibility is therefore that the entity will cave in to American pressure. Closing the chapter of this failing war and tending towards a ceasefire is a pressing issue in light of America recalibrating towards Russia and Ukraine, with American weapons granted to Kiev on the same day to target Russia, in addition to the developments in Iran with the upcoming elections.