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Palestinians Must Change Their Political Strategy

(Project Syndicate) Tony Blair - I can think of a thousand things Israel should do to make a Palestinian state more likely. But the truth is that such a state will come into being only if there is a fundamental shift in Palestinian strategy. The Palestinians don't need a strategy for sympathy. They need a strategy for statehood, and their current path will not lead them to it. In the real world, all the resolutions, gestures of support, and rhetorical expressions of solidarity showered upon the Palestinians buy next to nothing. To attain a political objective requires starting with a cold-blooded analysis of the reality of your situation. To achieve two states living side by side in peace, in circumstances where one state already exists and is much more powerful than the proposed state, means that the first must feel safe with the creation of the second. It is inconceivable that Gaza, under the control of Hamas, and the West Bank, controlled by Fatah, could yield a credible agreement for a state. It will therefore be difficult for any Israeli prime minister to accept one, and for any U.S. president to compel its establishment. Palestinian political unity on a basis that is compatible with peaceful co-existence with Israel is a pre-condition for success. The Arabs care about the Palestinians, and they care passionately about Jerusalem. But they are exhausted from being caught between the challenges of regional stabilization and modernization, which necessitate a close alliance with America and a burgeoning relationship with Israel, and a cause which they are expected to support but are excluded from managing. Instead of insisting that Arabs have nothing to do with Israel until the Palestinians have negotiated peace, the smart approach would be to encourage good Israeli-Arab relations. The goal should be a joint Arab-Israeli framework for the region, in which resolution of the Palestinian question is a part. This would give Israel confidence that peace with the Palestinians is part of genuine regional acceptance - not a reward for extracted concessions, but a natural consequence of a new spirit of friendship. The writer, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007, is Chairman of the Institute for Global Change.
2020-02-13 00:00:00
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