(Standpoint-UK) Julia Pettengill - As the Palestinian Authority (PA) begins to suffer from a shortfall in foreign aid, it seems increasingly clear that the PA's efforts to forge a more assertive diplomatic approach to Israel - namely, through entering into a reconciliation agreement with Hamas and its intention to pursue recognition of statehood at the UN this September - may well prove disastrous. In the case of the Fatah-Hamas reconciliation agreement, which has partially informed the U.S. Congress' recent threat to withdraw the $500 million in U.S. aid, the PA also stands to lose the international credibility it earned as a result of PM Salam Fayyad's state-building efforts. Israel has been the reliable straw man of most Middle Eastern autocrats for the past sixty years, who have deflected international attention and domestic anger at their own dysfunctional states onto the Zionist bogeyman. The Palestinians - best served by a peaceful settlement with the Israelis and the creation of a prosperous, secure Palestinian state - appear poised to be the losers in a very familiar regional game. The writer is a research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society.
2011-08-03 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive