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Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, March 2008, pages 61-62 Waging Peace Wilson Center Hosts Post-Annapolis Summit Debate
THE MIDDLE EAST Program of The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, DC hosted a Dec. 10, 2007 panel discussion on the prospect for peace building following the Middle East peace summit in Annapolis, MD on Nov. 27. The panel included presentations by Israeli Ambassador to the United States Sallai Meridor and head of the PLO Mission to the United States Ambassador Afif Safieh. The discussion was moderated by The Wilson Center’s David Aaron Miller. Both Meridor and Safieh tried to put a positive spin on what little occurred at the summit. According to the Israeli diplomat, “It was a very good day for the U.S. and Israel and Palestine.” Saying that the both the Israelis and Palestinians benefited from the attendance of so many Arab countries, Meridor added, however, that the Israelis had many concerns and hesitations about heading down the road of peace once again. Their concerns included the failure of Camp David, the Palestinian reaction to Israel’s unilateral disengagement from Gaza, and the Palestinian election in which the Palestinians freely voted Hamas into power. Meridor went on to say that Israel was encouraged by small signals from the Arab countries (this reporter wondered if the ambassador considered the twice-offered Saudi Peace Initiative as a small signal). “To make peace we must rewrite our narrative,” Meridor said. “Land that was promised to us in the Bible will be given up.” If the Palestinians are sincere in their quest for peace, Meridor said, Israel is willing to make this “very difficult journey.” “Was Annapolis a spectacular non-event?” Safieh asked rhetorically. Although he never really answered that question, he spoke of what encouraged him at the meeting, saying he was “delighted” to see that U.S. President George Bush and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice were engaged in the peace process after the Bush administration had neglected the issue for six years. “I feel Dr. Rice is sincere when she says the creation of a Palestinian state is in the United States’ interest,” he said, “and that failure should not be an option.” Safieh went on to cite recent U.S. polls that show that a “comfortable majority” of Americans support a two-state solution to the conflict. According to Safieh, this majority is even higher among American Jews. Reminding his audience that the Jewish community in this country is by no means monolithic, Safieh said he feels the debate over the Israel-Palestine conflict is being heard by more people in this county with the publication of such books as Palestine, Peace Not Apartheid and The Israel Lobby. The Jerusalem-born Safieh said he too was pleased to see that the international community, including more than 40 senior foreign ministry officials, joined the Americans, Israelis and the Palestinians at the summit. Europeans, he pointed out, are not happy that they are not playing more of an active role in the peace process, yet are still expected to contribute financially to the parties. “Europe is still an actor in search of a role,” Safieh noted, “and the Middle East has a role in search of an actor.” Safieh explained that the origins of the peace plan proposed by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia in 2002 could be traced back to 1981, when King Fahd of Saudi Arabia presented a similar plan. Noting that the Israelis ignored that one as well, Safieh pointed out that the Arab world has been ready for peace for a long time. “If Israel will withdraw from its 1967 expansion,” he stated, “the Arab world is in favor of recognizing Israel in its pre-1967 existence.” We understand that America is committed to Israel’s existence,” the ambasssador continued, “but is America committed to Israel’s expansion? I doubt it. What is America’s interest in Israel keeping the hilltops of the West Bank? None.” For the past two years, Safieh’s message to his American audiences has been that the Palestinians don’t want America to reject their traditional friend Israel, but are offering themselves as an additional friend. There is a growing feeling among Americans “that the unresolved question of Palestine has poisoned [America’s] international relations,” he said. “We, the Palestinians, are the key to America’s acceptability, respectability and lovability around the world.” Safieh concluded by urging the Israeli leadership and general public to keep three points in mind. First, the Jewish communities of America and Western Europe have always been in the forefront of society’s changes and progressive movements. Now, however, because of what is occurring in the Middle East, they are forced to “defend the indefensible.” Secondly, that the Palestinians are the key to Israel’s regional acceptance, and with acceptance comes peace and security. And finally, Safieh asserted, “Israeli public opinion should be made aware that the current situation of the conflict is not due to Arab rejection of Israel’s existence, but Israel’s rejection of Arab acceptance.” The lively debate may be viewed in its entirety at —Jamal Najjab |
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