Israel’s coming election will be far more than an ordinary political contest, Maj. Gen. (res.) Uzi Dayan told NEWSRAEL. It will decide how the country intends to survive and operate in an increasingly dangerous Middle East.

Dayan said the central division between Israel’s right and left remains rooted in national security. Key questions include whether Jerusalem must remain Israel’s undivided capital, whether the Jordan River should remain Israel’s eastern security border and whether a Palestinian state can be established.

He argued that Israel currently has no Palestinian partner in either Gaza or Judea and Samaria. Dayan, who participated in negotiations with the Palestinians, Jordanians and Syrians, said right-wing parties broadly agree that a Palestinian state cannot be created under present conditions.