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The American Disengagement Plan

(Ha'aretz) Aluf Benn - All the signs point to the Americans believing an agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians to be a lost cause and a waste of time and political prestige. They know there is no chance of an agreement while Arafat "rules" the Palestinian side. After the failure of the "Aqaba process" last June and the fall of former PA prime minister Abu Mazen, the Americans decamped, and have now even stopped mentioning any solution for the conflict in political statements such as President Bush's State of the Union address, which last year included the promise to promote "peace between a secure Israel and a democratic Palestine." The U.S. has achieved its strategic goal, to prevent "leakage" of the conflict to neighboring countries. The Arab world is divided and conflicted and busy with the survival of its regimes rather than with concern for the Palestinians. Now America is deeply involved in the election campaign, during which they are refraining from pressures on Israel. But this time there is a suspicion that this is not a time out until after the elections, but a more profound and significant disengagement.
2004-01-21 00:00:00
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