Former Israeli minister of strategic affairs and former Israeli ambassador to the United States Ron Dermer spoke at Beth Tfiloh Congregation Sept. 23 as part of his “Unite. Lead. Fight.” tour addressing the need for Jews to come together in the face of rising antisemitism.

In an interview with Baltimore Jewish Times, he noted he thinks it’s important to combat antisemitism whenever possible, even if the outcome isn’t assured.

“Sometimes my experience with a lot of Jewish organizations is they don’t want to fight a single battle that they don’t win in advance,” Dermer said. “There’s a logic to it, which is if we lose a battle, it will just embolden our enemies. But that logic only works when there’s deterrence … the issue is that deterrence has collapsed, and I think it’s become a little bit open season on Jews.”

For Dermer, who spoke to a packed crowd at Beth Tfiloh that included his wife, a Baltimore native, and one of his children, now is the time for Jews to do something he said the Jewish people don’t have “a good record” with: coming together and putting differences aside.

“2,000 years ago in Jerusalem, when the Romans besieged the city, the ones who burned the grain stores weren’t the Romans, it was the Jews. [Uniting] is hard for us to do. My plea is that we become a different generation that can learn from the past and put aside all political, theological and partisan differences and unite against those who are trying to kill us.”

Dermer said it’s theoretically not antisemitism if you don’t believe any country has a right to exist. He told Baltimore Jewish Times that a so-called anti-Zionist who believes no nation has the right to found a sovereign state — including the Jewish people — would not necessarily be antisemitic.

“I’d call him an idiot. That’s different,” he said.

With its founding in 1948, the conversation around Israel and Zionism shifted, Dermer said. To him, dismantling Israel is neither ethical nor feasible.

“I think it’s very important to draw a distinction between being an anti-Zionist in 1926 and being an anti-Zionist in 2026. The distinction I will draw is there’s a big debate about abortion, but the last time I checked, there was no debate about infanticide — meaning, this baby has already been born,” he said. “It was born 78 years ago.”

Dermer noted, however, Israel isn’t and shouldn’t be immune to criticism. He just wants to see Israel held to the same standard as any other state, and not the standard of perfection.

In the early 2000s, with human rights champion and Israeli politician Natan Sharansky, he was part of creating the “3D test” that separates legitimate criticism of Israel from antisemitism: If the critiques demonize, apply a double standard to or deny Israel’s right to exist, it is invalid.

Dermer used the metaphor of a 3D movie to describe the applicability of the test to Sharansky, with whom he co-wrote “The Case for Democracy.”

“I said, ‘Listen Natan, it’s like watching a 3D movie. Without the glasses, everything is blurred … all of a sudden, you put the 3D test on, and it pops out at you.’ You know what Natan said to me?” Dermer said. “He said, ‘What’s a 3D movie?’ I took for granted that a guy who grew up in the Soviet Union and spent nine years in prison had seen a 3D movie.”

Dermer said he is bullish on the future of the relationship between the United States and Israel because of how much Israel matters to U.S. security interests. He added he could deal with the possibility of either political party placing an anti-Israel candidate in the White House, because Israelis can make an appeal to American interests. He noted Israel’s ties with the U.S. government, American security institutions and industry are deeply entrenched, and that its status as a U.S. ally in the Middle East make that relationship increasingly important.

“I think we can overcome an anti-Israel president in the White House. You know what we can’t overcome?” he said. “An anti-American president in the White House … what many still refuse to see is [that] a lot of the hostility that you see building up against Israel is fundamentally hostility against the United States.”

Dermer said antisemites exist on both sides of the aisle, and that attacks coming from the right and left underscore the need for unity among Jewish people.

Explaining why he is traveling the United States speaking at synagogues, schools and more about the importance of Jews coming together, Dermer, an Israeli flag lapel pin on his jacket, shifted in his seat and referenced an anti-Israel protest in New York from a few months ago.

“Somebody interviewed them, and they asked them why they’re protesting. They said ‘We want them to be afraid,’” he said. “I don’t want the Jews to be afraid, and I don’t think the Jews should be afraid.”

aguckes@midatlanticmedia.com