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Beyond Unilateral Withdrawal
(Jerusalem Post) Zalman Shoval - Not allowing the situation to drift is one of the main reasons for Israel raising the concept of unilateral steps while still adhering to the vision of the road map. We are not likely to have a real peace partner on the Palestinian side for a long time. A recent Palestinian-conducted poll established that even if Israel were to accept the more than slightly subversive and blatantly pro-Palestinian Geneva Accord, only 25% of Palestinians would accept this as the end of the conflict with Israel. So Israel is saying: Let's decide for ourselves what, and where, is really vitally important to us - mainly, though not exclusively, from the point of view of security. Since a formula for a formal peace agreement does not exist, the way to deal with this impasse is for Israel to go ahead and establish administrative and physical dividing lines between it and the Palestinian areas. Acting precipitously to dismantle settlements would create, on the Palestinian side, a false sense of having gained an advantage over Israel as a result of their three-year terror campaign.