(Council on Foreign Relations) Elliott Abrams - It is clear that President Trump would like to move the Israelis and Palestinians forward toward a peace agreement. According to press reports, his adviser, Jason Greenblatt, recently held discussions in Jerusalem on how Israeli settlement activities might be limited, and of steps that might be taken to improve the Palestinian economy. These are important subjects to cover, but there is another one that simply must be on the table (and perhaps it was). The list of subjects must include what the Palestinians will give, not just what they will receive. Congress is increasingly hostile to continuing American aid while payments to convicted terrorists and their families by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) continue. There is also the matter of "incitement," meaning statements and actions by the PA that glorify terror and demonize Israel and Jews. In the last few decades, under presidents of both parties, the U.S. has said this must stop but has never penalized the PA when it did not. It would be a mistake to give the PA and PLO concessions in return for nothing. It would be a mistake to reward Abbas merely for returning to negotiations he should never have left and that are not a favor to the U.S. or to Israel. The writer, a senior fellow for Middle Eastern Studies at the CFR, was a deputy national security adviser in the George W. Bush administration.
2017-03-27 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive