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The Fantasy of Palestinian Statehood
(Telegraph-UK) John Bolton - British Foreign Secretary David Cameron recently suggested that the UK could recognize the state of "Palestine." The Biden administration is also musing about recognizing a nonexistent state. Since the first Oslo Accord, if not before, it has been bedrock peace-process doctrine that both Israel and the Palestinians must agree to any "two-state solution." Moreover, Israel is responding to a terrorist attack comparable to al-Qaeda's 9-11 attack on America, while simultaneously menaced by Iran's quest for nuclear weapons. What kind of ally then puts a knife in Israel's back? In international law, statehood has critically important characteristics, including having a defined territory and population, a capital city, and being able to implement normal governmental functions. There is no existing "Palestine" that meets any of these core criteria. Pretending that the Palestinian Authority qualifies does not make it so. Imposing this outcome almost certainly reduces Palestinian incentives to deal seriously with the Israeli government. The writer served as U.S. national security adviser.