Healthy competition, even between the US and China, is beneficial for the global economy, but no politician likes someone else competing for his job.

So now that newcomer Benny Gantz is breathing down Binyamin Netanyahu’s neck, Netanyahu announced he will pay two short state visits — one to Poland next week for the Warsaw conference on the Middle East, and the second, a still unscheduled visit to India for what will be his third meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in as many years.

The Warsaw parley will reportedly feature some big names, such as Trump’s peace team of Jared Kushner and Jason Greenblatt, and foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, and Jordan.

While Bibi normally runs for reelection as Mr. Security, Gantz holds strong defense credentials as a former IDF chief of staff. So one rationale of Bibi’s overseas travels is to send a message to Israelis that voting for a rival without foreign policy experience would be disruptive at a time when important new relationships are being cemented.

(Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 747)