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Challenges of Middle East Peace

(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) David Makovsky - On March 3, Arab foreign ministers gave their support for Abbas to participate in proximity talks. It is impossible for any country to make the most vital decisions without the confidence of dealing directly with the other side. I think the prospect of the Israelis and Palestinians reaching a grand agreement on all the core or so-called final status issues is very unlikely at this time. The four core issues are: the rights of refugees, control of Jerusalem, security, and territory/borders. The first two issues seem unlikely to be resolved anytime soon. It is vital that we concentrate our efforts on areas that are amenable to progress and focus on what is attainable. The U.S. is smarting from the fact that the Arab states were supposed to match Israeli moves on settlements with gestures towards Israel, but failed to do anything. The Arab states may say that the settlement moratorium is not 100% of what they would like. No negotiation is what one side wants. Yet, even if they think Netanyahu only moved 70%, they have responded with 0% reciprocity. It is unlikely the U.S. will go down this road again. There is a big difference between the U.S. imposing a solution on the parties and the U.S. putting forward a bridging proposal after direct negotiations have brought the parties closer to a deal. It is possible to bridge over a river, but not over an ocean. A U.S. bridging proposal may occur, but only after direct negotiations have been tried in earnest. In short, the U.S. can supplement negotiations but cannot substitute for them. The writer, director of The Washington Institute's Project on the Middle East Peace Process, testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on March 4.
2010-03-05 08:09:46
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