Bill Richardson, who passed at 75, was one of Israel’s best American friends - opinion

At the beginning of this month, Israel lost a great friend with the passing at 75 of Bill Richardson, former governor of New Mexico and former US ambassador to the United Nations.

Richardson cultivated a unique specialty in foreign affairs, positioning himself as an emissary – sometimes a secret one, and not always a welcome one for US officials – to brutish foreign leaders whom American presidents and other officials could not or would not meet themselves. He placed himself in personal danger in order to work on behalf of those whose voices were silenced.

Over several decades, beginning in the 1990s, Richardson met with the likes of Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, Cuba’s Fidel Castro, and more than one member of North Korea’s ruling Kim dynasty.

Several of his trips are widely credited with winning the freedom of detained Americans whose release had not been possible to secure through official channels, whether for practical or political reasons. His swashbuckling persona, while anathema to many, was just the right mix of bully and intellect to achieve, through the back door, what seasoned diplomats could only dream about.

He was also a steadfast friend of Israel and a major ally of the small but influential Jewish community in New Mexico.

I interfaced with him on a number of occasions as our office represented the trade and investment interests of New Mexico in Israel, only one of two overseas locations where the state maintained such operations, the other being Taiwan.

In an earlier op-ed in The Jerusalem Post wherein I took a very pro-Zionist approach to the right of Jews to live in Israel, someone in Albuquerque wrote a letter to then-governor Richardson complaining that the state should not have a rabid Zionist representing its interests in Israel. (I actually found it interesting that anyone would ever describe me as a rabid anything.) As a result, I was asked to come to the US and meet with the governor in Santa Fe, the state’s capital, to explain myself. This was just after the state’s legislature had eliminated the budget for the office in Israel as well. 

The governor took pains to slap me on the wrist, as it were, in order to placate the letter writer. He then said, “Don’t worry.” It was important to him and to the state to have a trade promotion office here and that I should give him a year and we will be back representing New Mexico.

Then he added, “I like rabid Zionists.” 

He kept his word, fought to have the budget for the office approved during the next legislative session, and won his case – and Israel’s.  

Trade and investment relations

In 2008 Richardson paid a visit to Israel to bolster the state’s trade and investment relations with Israel.  Our company hosted that visit and he met with government ministers and business leaders, as well as companies interested in joint venture opportunities with New Mexico’s large defense research sector. 

At the time, Eli Yishai was minister of trade, industry, and labor. He met with the governor to sign a memorandum of understanding underscoring the desire of Israel and New Mexico to ramp up their bilateral commercial activities.  

During one exchange Yishai mentioned something that was going on in Israel, Richardson heard it, looked at me, and asked: “Did you know that?” 

Sadly, I did not and he told me “You’re fired.” He did this often with people but it was just a humorous side of him that was not normally seen behind the façade of the tough guy he tried to portray. As I recall he said that to me multiple times during the visit. But, of course, we were not fired.    

In the run-up to the 2012 US presidential election, then-candidate Barack Obama needed to shore up his foreign policy bona fides and asked Richardson to travel to overseas locations and convince world leaders that he, Obama, could do the job. Our company handled his brief three-day visit to Israel which began with a Saturday night stop at the Rabin Memorial in Tel Aviv, followed by meetings with many government ministers as well as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-president Shimon Peres. His reputation here, as well as in other world capitals, gave a major boost to Obama’s credibility as a potential president.

Richard was accompanied on that visit by Robert Malley, the lead author (four years later) of Obama’s 2015 Iran nuclear deal and someone who often was persona non grata in the Jewish and Israeli communities, given his pro-Palestinian views. For many of us, there was always something unsettling about Malley, so it was no surprise that after a long career in Washington, something occurred that caused the administration to place him on unpaid leave, remove him from his position as special envoy to Iran and cancel his security clearance. 

In retrospect, Richardson was someone who answered the call whenever it came, who could be depended upon to “deliver the goods,” and who evidenced a residual love for Israel and its people. Whenever he could he showed that love and concern, often when it was least expected. 

We need to be grateful for friends like him and praise their work on our behalf.  Now that he has left us, we will miss him.  

May his soul rest in peace and his memory be for a blessing.

The writer has lived in Jerusalem for almost 40 years and is CEO of international business development consultancy Atid EDI Ltd., chair of the American State Offices Association in Israel, former board chair of Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, and past national president of the AACI.