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Cutting Out the Middleman

[Ha'aretz] Shlomo Avineri - The Israel-Syria negotiations were not initiated by the U.S. and so far, Washington has played no part in them. There are even some who have discerned a certain sourness in the American reaction to reports of talks in Ankara. For decades, the U.S. has been trying to broker an agreement between Israel and Arab states, but not a single one of these initiatives has led to an Israeli-Arab deal. All the peace agreements that have been reached so far began as an initiative of the parties themselves, and the truly significant negotiations were not conducted via the U.S. Egyptian president Anwar Sadat's visit to Jerusalem took place without American knowledge or involvement. Negotiations between Israel and the PLO, which led to the Oslo Accords, were conducted covertly and without American knowledge. Even the agreement between Israel and Jordan was reached in talks between the two sides - to which the U.S. was not a party. Ultimately, it was the political will and considerations, the initiative and resourcefulness of local leaders that set the stage for negotiations, and which made them both possible and successful. America is important, but ultimately, local interests prevail - and that's to the good. The writer is professor emeritus at Hebrew University and former director general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
2008-05-30 01:00:00
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