Face to Face
They met, they conversed, they conducted the meeting that both were somewhat apprehensive of. They certainly did not agree with one another's point of view. And little wonder; one state concerned over its longevity and the safety of its population, the other over its international reputation and the continuing availability of energy sourcing.
President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Photo: AP
One represents a powerful state, a world power capable of exercising its influence in a way that few other countries can, a country of over three hundred million people, with untold wealth and world influence taking up one-third of a continent shared by other, friendly nations. The other a tiny, still-fledgling state of seven million on a minuscule plot of land struggling to exist amidst other, larger states viewing its presence as an assault on their religious, social, heritage sensibilities.
The world power is accustomed to other countries listening carefully when it speaks and recommends a course of action. The tiny country has accustomed itself to listening and responding to the powerful pull of its inbred and hard-earned sense of security, toward its finely-honed antennae for resisting advice that will prove to be inimical to its existence, while remaining dependent on the goodwill of the other.
Their meeting was that of two strong-willed men, intelligent and cautious, each representing the highest executive office of their countries, each seeking the advantage, to impress the other by the forcefulness of their separate arguments. President Obama is concerned with settling the vexatious issue of Israeli-Palestinian adversity, to be concluded with a peace treaty and the establishing of a Palestinian state alongside that of Israel.
Prime Minister Netanyahu is concerned with first things first; extracting from his country's long-time supporter the understanding that peace between adversaries comes a dim second to establishing security from the very real threat of extinction promised by a nuclear-weaponizing Islamist neighbour whose fiercely deadly agenda is to destroy Israel. That threat is a cudgel that even the Palestinians use to their advantage.
Islamist Iran and its fanatical ayatollahs use their proxy armies in Lebanon and Gaza to threaten the security of Israel, so the matter of peace and a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinian Authority is moot, at best, accomplishing a questionable settlement for peace, one that no agency, individual or government in the Middle East outside Iran can guarantee.
The Israeli Prime Minister candidly states "I want to make it clear that we don't want to govern the Palestinians. We want to live in peace with them. We want them to govern themselves absent a handful of powers that could endanger the state of Israel." The PA has demonstrated no anxiety to meet the most basic Israeli assurance; that of acknowledging it as a Jewish state. For to do so would be to deny the PA's longer-range agenda.
There truly is not that much difference between Fatah refusing to acknowledge Israel as a Jewish state, and Hamas refusing to acknowledge the legitimacy of Israel as a state. Both have a similar agenda, approaching the conclusion of their agenda in a different fashion, toward the same end. If Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon, leaving it to Hezbollah, and Israel's withdrawal from Gaza leaving it to Hamas leaves any lesson it is that peace is illusory.
Mr. Netanyahu wants to be cautious. The Palestinian Authority must demonstrate it is capable of building a firm and reliable infrastructure for a fully autonomous state, one that will not be caught up in building an army for the purpose of mounting an attack on its neighbour. It must show, conclusively, that it is interested in furthering the quality of life of Palestinians in a state of their own, committed to peace and neighbourliness.
In the words of the Washington Times editorial, it should 'earn the right to statehood', not merely be declaring that it is ready but by building the infrastructure for a nascent state, by accommodating itself to an even-handed acceptance of its neighbour. And not by demanding that Israel accept the 'right of return' for 6-million descendants of Palestinians who fled the "Naqbah" as a means of undermining Israel's Jewishness.
And while President Obama will not place an 'artificial deadline' on his country's diplomatic attempts to 'reach out' to Tehran, he must be prepared to listen to the counter-arguments of Israel's Prime Minister, that Israel considers Iran's threats against it as far more serious, far more needful of immediate attention and resolving than the two-state solution.
Labels: Israel, Middle East, Political Realities, United States
posted by Pieface @ Tuesday, May 19, 2009
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