Tuesday September 28, 2010

I've Been Thinking:

The United States has expressed disappointment over Israel's decision to restart building in the West Bank. It looks like the Israeli/Palestinian talks are on the ropes. So US Presidential Special Envoy George Mitchell will return to Israel on Tuesday with the express purpose of getting the talks back on track.

The United States wants Israel to stop building in exchange for several "guarantees." The "guarantees" include promises about Palestinian refugees, about security, about Israel's right to exist as a Jewish State.

The Israeli prime minister isn't interested. But Mitchell and Clinton have their own agenda. They want to convince Israel to accept the guarantees and move ahead. The problem with the guarantees is that they are coming from the US - not from the Palestinians.

The United States thinks that certain items are a given and easily and mutually acceptable. Nothing is further from the truth. There is not one single issue that the United States can raise that will be easily accepted by both parties. Only when the United States realizes this truth will they have reached a serious level of sophistication in their understanding of the region.

Only then will the United States have a chance at bringing peace to the region. But that time is still far, far away.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=halpern%2C+micah