Oct 19 2008
Foreign Policy continued: Israel today
Today Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak said today that Israel is considering a comprehensive peace plan proposed by Saudi Arabia in 2002.
The plan is basically that Israel would withdraw from the West Bank, Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights (all lands captured during the 1967 war) in exchange for Arab recognition of Israel. The plan has been endorsed by the 22-member Arab League of Nations.
“There is definitely room to introduce a comprehensive Israeli plan to counter the Saudi plan that would be the basis for a discussion on overall regional peace,” Barak told Israel’s Army Radio.
One positive sign that Barak noted was the “deep, joint interest” with Arab leaders in containing Iran’s nuclear ambitions and limiting the influence of the radical Islamic Hezbollah and Hamas movements.
“I strongly believe that the Arab initiative is the best approach to peace between the Arabs and the Israelis,” said Ghassan Khatib, a former minister in the Palestinian Cabinet, “It fulfills all the legitimate objectives of Israel and those of the Palestinians and at the same time it has this regional dimension and it reflects one of the rare issues on which Arabs have consensus.”
Barak has also spoken with Israel’s Foreign Minister/Prime Minister-designate Tzipi Livni about the plan. Livni is currently trying to assemble Israel’s new government in her bid to become Israel’s second female prime minister. Barak, the leader of the labour party, is expected to hold a high-ranking position in her government.
As foreign minister Livni has been leading US-backed negotiations with the Palestinians since the 2007 Annapolis conference. Livni has promised to keep working with the peace process if she becomes prime minister.
Livni requested to have 14 extra days to form the new government, a request that current prime minister Ehud Olmert is expected to grant. Right now she’s lobbying for the support of other parties, including the Shas, to form a majority in the 120-member Knesset.
According to an official one of the Shas demands is a promise not to discuss the fate of Jerusalem with the Palestinians. Livni chose not to respond to questions about the peace agreement.
If Livni cannot get her government together in time then Israel would likely hold general elections. If this is the case then the most likely winner would be the conservative Likud party.
Yuval Steinitz, an Israeli lawmaker from the Likud Party and a member of parliament’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, said that for Israel, the Saudi plan is a nonstarter and called Barak’s remarks “an empty political gesture.”
What will the next chapter of the Middle East conflict contain? It will very likely depend on what happens in the next 14 days and whether or not Livni can get her majority.
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2008 seems like the time to tear down outmoded mentalities. I honestly can’t imagine a united western (not Westernized, but geographically) cadre of the MidEast united and opposed to a nuclear and hostile Iran.
Like everything, this decision is most likely fueled by the almighty dollar and the potential for trade, so we’ll see what happens after Iran’s upcoming election. Tis the year for “hope”, though, so anything’s possible…
Here’s to hoping…
Money is usually the motivation behind a lot of peace plans. It’s rarely done for the humanity of it.