The Israeli public and many others are looking at the US-Iran memorandum of understanding and seeing a massive, dangerous departure from the previous Witkoff-Kushner diplomatic victory in Gaza. But look closer. The situations are wildly different, but the underlying blueprint is the same: achieve a status change in the short term while the world is paying attention, and then let it play out. Change the reality on the ground, declare a win, and figure out the rest later.

There is something fundamentally “Israeli startup” about the Steve Witkoff- Jared Kushner approach to geopolitics: only deal with what is directly in front of you, fix the bug that can’t wait for tomorrow, and pitch investors on a picture of a future that is wonderful and bright.

What appears like the simple, cynical exercise of kicking the can down the road can, in a more charitable view, be seen as changing elements of an untenable situation to unstick progress. You freeze the conflict, sign the paper, and then allow the new reality to play out a bit, operating on the assumption that this new baseline will eventually create opportunities for all sides to reach a lasting agreement, or not.