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A "Settlement Freeze" Compromise

[National Review] Having failed to bully Netanyahu into a total settlement freeze, U.S. negotiator George Mitchell is said to be asking for a moratorium of six months or a year in new units started, that would allow completion of all projects already underway, perhaps 2,500-3,000 units. Mitchell, who is reported to want to leave his negotiator position at the end of 2009, would be able to quit while this "freeze" is in place. Why Netanyahu and his government loathe this entire project is clear. Morally, it accepts the argument that Israelis have no right to live in the West Bank (or even some parts of Jerusalem). And what's the exit strategy when the agreed time ends - and Obama says, "I just need a bit more time to bring peace and freedom to the Middle East." The Palestinian leaders know settlement construction is a made-up issue. They know that life in the West Bank is getting better, the economy is improving, the Israelis are removing roadblocks and obstacles to movement - and they know that settlement construction provides badly needed employment for Palestinian construction workers. Abbas has said a hundred times in the last few months that he will not agree to resume negotiations with Israel unless there is a settlement freeze. The U.S. will call whatever compromise Mitchell reaches a "settlement freeze" and will then turn the pressure on Abbas to go back to the table. The writer, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, was the deputy national security adviser handling the Middle East in the George W. Bush administration.
2009-07-20 06:00:00
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