The banality of normalisation: the desecuritisation of Israel’s Aggrandisement in the Middle East

Calculli, M.

doi:doi:10.1080/03932729.2025.2573168

The United States (US)-orchestrated diplomatic integration of Israel in the Arab region, despite the continuous expansion of Israeli settler colonialism and violation of Palestinian and Arab sovereignty, is a paradigmatic example of how the politics of ‘normalisation’ serves as a tool for reordering space. The analysis offered here challenges dominant realist and liberal explanations – emphasising either interest-driven foreign policy or regional cooperation as a path to peace – by introducing the concept of ‘desecuritisation without an audience’. Drawing on critical uses of Securitisation Theory (ST), it argues that ‘normalisation’ is not about persuasion of publics, but rather elite-driven transactionalism to bypass them. This process reflects a broader erosion of the notion of sovereignty as ‘responsibility’, where state policies openly serve the logic of capital without even the pretence of seeking popular legitimacy. A historical examination of the securitisation and...Show moreThe United States (US)-orchestrated diplomatic integration of Israel in the Arab region, despite the continuous expansion of Israeli settler colonialism and violation of Palestinian and Arab sovereignty, is a paradigmatic example of how the politics of ‘normalisation’ serves as a tool for reordering space. The analysis offered here challenges dominant realist and liberal explanations – emphasising either interest-driven foreign policy or regional cooperation as a path to peace – by introducing the concept of ‘desecuritisation without an audience’. Drawing on critical uses of Securitisation Theory (ST), it argues that ‘normalisation’ is not about persuasion of publics, but rather elite-driven transactionalism to bypass them. This process reflects a broader erosion of the notion of sovereignty as ‘responsibility’, where state policies openly serve the logic of capital without even the pretence of seeking popular legitimacy. A historical examination of the securitisation and desecuritisation of Israel by Arab states highlights a fundamental transition from alignment with Pan-Arabism and anti-colonial solidarity towards elite-driven transactionalism. This shift has further alienated Arab publics, sparking cycles of resistance against the ongoing erasure of Palestine. A conceptualisation of ‘normalisation’ within the logic of racial capitalism exposes how ‘normalisation’ facilitates Israel’s settler-colonial expansion and suppression of indigenous political visions, ultimately undermining regional stability rather than securing it.
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The banality of normalisation: the desecuritisation of Israel’s Aggrandisement in the Middle East