Mike Pouraryan
Biden Going to the Middle East: Waste of Time?
When I wrote about US Vice President Biden's Trip to the Middle East in SP's Sister Site, Outsider Views, , I was sceptical. I was sceptical because I am of the view that it takes two to tango. The United States is trying. But Israel is not buying the good and they are doing everything to derail the process. Netanyahu is saying he wants peace. But, the reality is otherwise.
I wrote about the gains made by the Palestinian Authority since 2007. They have worked to stamp out corruption, have begun to nurture business activity and put the building blocks for a viable Palestinian State. I have also been gratified by the work by courageous Jewish Americans like Ronald Bruder have done to truly understand that Education and Employment are interlinked. This is something that seems to be losing steam with some of the creative schemes that are currently being cooked up by the major US foundations. There is of course the story of Mansour Izgayer. He and his brothers have built Royal Industries and Trading to be a leading supplier of Plumbing Materials to the West Bank. Joe Klein featured it in his Feburary 25, 2010 Time Magazine Column. There is also the story of Bashar Marsi who is building a City for 50,000 People. Instead of encouraging such activity, Netanyahu and his Government are stiffling progress at every turn.
Now, the key demand by Netanyahu is to acknowledge Israel to be a Jewish State. What about the 20% of Israelis who are of Arab origin? What about the growth patterns of the Israeli Arabs? For a nation that was born out of one of the worst crimes in recorded history, there needs to be a special sensitivity and understanding shown.
What is gratifying to see is that the reaction of J Street. I received this email from J Street that goes to the heart of what is required:
1. The announcement of proximity talks is a positive step in the right direction. Diplomatic engagement after months of delay and political posturing is far better than a vacuum, and we applaud the determination shown by the United States, President Obama and, in particular, Middle East Peace Envoy George Mitchell to get the parties to agree to talk.
2. Process and talk, while commendable, are not the goal. Achieving a two-state solution is. Just yesterday, Opposition Leader Tzipi Livni put it bluntly in an interview: "The goal is not the negotiations -- the goal is the peace treaty." [2]
3. The US role in this process is, to state the obvious, vital to any hope of success. Nearly all experts know that the parties alone cannot reach an agreement. Success isn't simply in the interest of Israelis and Palestinians, it's a core national security interest for the United States - and a strong, sustained American role in the process will be key to bridging gaps and supporting all sides in making the difficult but necessary compromises for peace.
4. Successful agreements -- like the peace treaty with Egypt and achievements at Taba -- have included such a role. We are encouraged by reports that there is a clear time limit for these talks.
5. There is no need to start over from scratch. After years of negotiations, the outlines of a viable two-state solution are well known and widely agreed upon - borders based on the 1967 lines with agreed reciprocal land swaps; Jerusalem as the capital of both states, based on the demographic realities on the ground and allowing freedom of access to all holy sites; robust security arrangements; and an agreed upon resolution of the refugee issue that preserves Israel's Jewish character.
6. Now is the time to get serious. The stakes are enormous. There are those who believe that the United States will put no political capital behind the process and will do little to help bridge the gaps because of the upcoming Congressional elections. [3] This view fails to recognize that the window of opportunity to achieve a viable two-state solution is nearly closed and the coming years are the last chance to secure Israel's future as a democracy and a national home to the Jewish people. All parties - especially the United States - must keep this concern front and center as the talks progress, and especially if they stall. In particular, we urge the pro-Israel community in the United States to rally behind this effort fully, given the stakes.J Street Speaks
J Street is the organization that has arisen to be a counter and provide a more realistic assessment of what is going on. For every step forward, there is an apparent step back. As Senator Mitchell and the Israeli Premier talked, the Israeli Defense Ministry approved additional construction under the guise of an exception. I have to wonder what they were thinking. This is coming from one of the ministries ran by the Labor Leader, Ehud Barack. Why did Barack approve it? Does he not understand the stakes? Why do they want to undermine the Palestinians? Peace is a two way street. Israel's current leadership has no interest in peace--just talk, but no action.
I wrote about the gains made by the Palestinian Authority since 2007. They have worked to stamp out corruption, have begun to nurture business activity and put the building blocks for a viable Palestinian State. I have also been gratified by the work by courageous Jewish Americans like Ronald Bruder have done to truly understand that Education and Employment are interlinked. This is something that seems to be losing steam with some of the creative schemes that are currently being cooked up by the major US foundations. There is of course the story of Mansour Izgayer. He and his brothers have built Royal Industries and Trading to be a leading supplier of Plumbing Materials to the West Bank. Joe Klein featured it in his Feburary 25, 2010 Time Magazine Column. There is also the story of Bashar Marsi who is building a City for 50,000 People. Instead of encouraging such activity, Netanyahu and his Government are stiffling progress at every turn.
Now, the key demand by Netanyahu is to acknowledge Israel to be a Jewish State. What about the 20% of Israelis who are of Arab origin? What about the growth patterns of the Israeli Arabs? For a nation that was born out of one of the worst crimes in recorded history, there needs to be a special sensitivity and understanding shown.
What is gratifying to see is that the reaction of J Street. I received this email from J Street that goes to the heart of what is required:
1. The announcement of proximity talks is a positive step in the right direction. Diplomatic engagement after months of delay and political posturing is far better than a vacuum, and we applaud the determination shown by the United States, President Obama and, in particular, Middle East Peace Envoy George Mitchell to get the parties to agree to talk.
2. Process and talk, while commendable, are not the goal. Achieving a two-state solution is. Just yesterday, Opposition Leader Tzipi Livni put it bluntly in an interview: "The goal is not the negotiations -- the goal is the peace treaty." [2]
3. The US role in this process is, to state the obvious, vital to any hope of success. Nearly all experts know that the parties alone cannot reach an agreement. Success isn't simply in the interest of Israelis and Palestinians, it's a core national security interest for the United States - and a strong, sustained American role in the process will be key to bridging gaps and supporting all sides in making the difficult but necessary compromises for peace.
4. Successful agreements -- like the peace treaty with Egypt and achievements at Taba -- have included such a role. We are encouraged by reports that there is a clear time limit for these talks.
5. There is no need to start over from scratch. After years of negotiations, the outlines of a viable two-state solution are well known and widely agreed upon - borders based on the 1967 lines with agreed reciprocal land swaps; Jerusalem as the capital of both states, based on the demographic realities on the ground and allowing freedom of access to all holy sites; robust security arrangements; and an agreed upon resolution of the refugee issue that preserves Israel's Jewish character.
6. Now is the time to get serious. The stakes are enormous. There are those who believe that the United States will put no political capital behind the process and will do little to help bridge the gaps because of the upcoming Congressional elections. [3] This view fails to recognize that the window of opportunity to achieve a viable two-state solution is nearly closed and the coming years are the last chance to secure Israel's future as a democracy and a national home to the Jewish people. All parties - especially the United States - must keep this concern front and center as the talks progress, and especially if they stall. In particular, we urge the pro-Israel community in the United States to rally behind this effort fully, given the stakes.J Street Speaks
J Street is the organization that has arisen to be a counter and provide a more realistic assessment of what is going on. For every step forward, there is an apparent step back. As Senator Mitchell and the Israeli Premier talked, the Israeli Defense Ministry approved additional construction under the guise of an exception. I have to wonder what they were thinking. This is coming from one of the ministries ran by the Labor Leader, Ehud Barack. Why did Barack approve it? Does he not understand the stakes? Why do they want to undermine the Palestinians? Peace is a two way street. Israel's current leadership has no interest in peace--just talk, but no action.
