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Direct Diplomacy Is the Only Way to Peace

(Los Angeles Times) Danny Danon - There are increasing calls for world leaders to back a new Israeli-Palestinian peace initiative. Some are planning an international summit; others have proposed a UN Security Council resolution that would set parameters for a final agreement. While Israel welcomes the good intentions of our friends, the modern history of Israeli-Arab peacemaking has taught us that only direct negotiations between the two sides can actually achieve results. Israel's enduring peace agreements with Egypt and Jordan were the result of representatives and leaders coming together to negotiate without preconditions. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu enacted a controversial construction freeze in Judea and Samaria [the West Bank] and released dozens of convicted murderers, all in the hope of convincing Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to negotiate with him. Abbas, however, continually tosses out new preconditions to agreeing merely to talk. Our peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan have proved that bitter enemies can settle their differences if they sit down to talk. Peace will come only when the Palestinians recognize the Jewish state as a legitimate partner for direct negotiations to resolve this conflict. The writer is Israel's ambassador to the United Nations.
2016-04-28 00:00:00
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