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Frantic bid to bridge Middle East divide
In the unlikely event this actually works, I think I might die from an overdose of irony.
Ian Black in Washington
Tuesday November 27, 2007
The Guardian
The United States was making frantic efforts to close gaps between Israelis and Palestinians last night on the eve of an ambitious and high-risk gamble to "relaunch" final peace negotiations after seven years of bloodshed and stalemate.
President George Bush held separate meetings with Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, at the White House in an 11th-hour effort to agree a joint declaration of principles before today's Annapolis summit - which is shaping up to be the biggest Israeli-Arab conference since Madrid in 1991.
At a dinner for the delegates last night, Mr Bush warned of hard bargaining ahead: "We've come together this week because we share a common goal: two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side-by-side in peace and security. Achieving this goal requires difficult compromises, and the Israelis and Palestinians have elected leaders committed to making them."
But pressure from hardliners at home fuelled profound scepticism about the prospects of a breakthrough. The Islamist movement Hamas warned Abbas he would be a "traitor" if he made concessions to Israel. Israel's opposition Likud leader, Binyamin Netanyahu, said Palestinians were "not lifting a finger to halt terror". Thousands protested in Jerusalem and Gaza against the talks.
Opinions on the progress made towards reaching a declaration were mixed yesterday: Israeli sources said there were still "significant" gaps after weeks of discussions; Yasser Abed Rabbo, a close Abbas aide, said agreement was close; the US state department said the parties were "converging" on a document with the help of Condoleezza Rice, the secretary of state.
Today's Maryland meeting has been billed as kickstarting "final status" negotiations on creating a Palestinian state alongside Israel. Bush will say in his opening speech that Middle East peace will be a high priority until he leaves office in January 2009.
Critics say he has neglected it fatefully since 2001 and has been utterly discredited in the region by the war in Iraq and bias towards Israel.
Stephen Hadley, his national security adviser, signalled that the president was unlikely to put forward new ideas. "It is now time for the parties to get into this process by way of negotiation," Hadley told reporters. "And I don't think the president will conclude that the time is right to start offering ideas on outcomes on specific issues."
In the Middle East, Annapolis has already been written off by many, with Iran leading the opposition. "This conference has already failed," the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said yesterday. "The US and its accomplices hope to preserve their reputation by this conference and compensate for past failures of the fake Zionist regime."
Ismail Haniyeh, the deposed prime minister of Hamas, in control of the Gaza Strip, warned that any agreement reached by Abbas would be invalid.
"The land of Palestine ... is purely owned by the Palestinians," said another Hamas leader, Mahmoud Zahar. "No person, group, government or generation has the right to give up one inch of it."
Despite these problems - and considerable private doubts - both sides were trying to sound upbeat.
"We are going to have lots of participants in what I hope will launch a serious process of negotiations between us and the Palestinians," Olmert said. Abbas said: "We have great hopes of this conference."
Participation by Saudi Arabia and Syria is giving it a strong Arab presence, including the first involvement in peace talks with Israel by the entire 22-member Arab League.
Tuesday November 27, 2007
The Guardian
The United States was making frantic efforts to close gaps between Israelis and Palestinians last night on the eve of an ambitious and high-risk gamble to "relaunch" final peace negotiations after seven years of bloodshed and stalemate.
President George Bush held separate meetings with Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, at the White House in an 11th-hour effort to agree a joint declaration of principles before today's Annapolis summit - which is shaping up to be the biggest Israeli-Arab conference since Madrid in 1991.
At a dinner for the delegates last night, Mr Bush warned of hard bargaining ahead: "We've come together this week because we share a common goal: two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side-by-side in peace and security. Achieving this goal requires difficult compromises, and the Israelis and Palestinians have elected leaders committed to making them."
But pressure from hardliners at home fuelled profound scepticism about the prospects of a breakthrough. The Islamist movement Hamas warned Abbas he would be a "traitor" if he made concessions to Israel. Israel's opposition Likud leader, Binyamin Netanyahu, said Palestinians were "not lifting a finger to halt terror". Thousands protested in Jerusalem and Gaza against the talks.
Opinions on the progress made towards reaching a declaration were mixed yesterday: Israeli sources said there were still "significant" gaps after weeks of discussions; Yasser Abed Rabbo, a close Abbas aide, said agreement was close; the US state department said the parties were "converging" on a document with the help of Condoleezza Rice, the secretary of state.
Today's Maryland meeting has been billed as kickstarting "final status" negotiations on creating a Palestinian state alongside Israel. Bush will say in his opening speech that Middle East peace will be a high priority until he leaves office in January 2009.
Critics say he has neglected it fatefully since 2001 and has been utterly discredited in the region by the war in Iraq and bias towards Israel.
Stephen Hadley, his national security adviser, signalled that the president was unlikely to put forward new ideas. "It is now time for the parties to get into this process by way of negotiation," Hadley told reporters. "And I don't think the president will conclude that the time is right to start offering ideas on outcomes on specific issues."
In the Middle East, Annapolis has already been written off by many, with Iran leading the opposition. "This conference has already failed," the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said yesterday. "The US and its accomplices hope to preserve their reputation by this conference and compensate for past failures of the fake Zionist regime."
Ismail Haniyeh, the deposed prime minister of Hamas, in control of the Gaza Strip, warned that any agreement reached by Abbas would be invalid.
"The land of Palestine ... is purely owned by the Palestinians," said another Hamas leader, Mahmoud Zahar. "No person, group, government or generation has the right to give up one inch of it."
Despite these problems - and considerable private doubts - both sides were trying to sound upbeat.
"We are going to have lots of participants in what I hope will launch a serious process of negotiations between us and the Palestinians," Olmert said. Abbas said: "We have great hopes of this conference."
Participation by Saudi Arabia and Syria is giving it a strong Arab presence, including the first involvement in peace talks with Israel by the entire 22-member Arab League.