Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Carnegie experts in the Middle East and D.C. discussed regional expectations for President Obama's address to the Muslim world, the administration’s approach to the Arab-Israeli peace process, and the significance of his stops in Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Kuwaitis have missed the drama and the elation of a democratic breakthrough. Their country today is not fully democratic; their transition has already taken more than a generation; and the outcome is still very much in doubt.
Trying to negotiate a two-state solution as if there were a viable Palestinian leadership, no Hamas, no Palestinian civil war, and no ongoing settlement activity has led us to where we are today.
Parties involved in the Arab-Israeli conflict should focus their efforts on a long-term ceasefire between Hamas and Israel and abandon the idea of a two-state solution, which has come to a dead end for the present time.
The Obama administration should focus on establishing a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that can evolve into an armistice, providing the necessary stability for Palestinians to rebuild their political system and engage in meaningful negotiations.
Rebuilding Gaza after the three-week Israeli military assault is a humanitarian necessity, and U.S. Secretary of State Clinton should take the lead at the upcoming international donors’ conference for Gaza to demonstrate U.S. concern for Palestinians.
Negotiations over a two-state solution have reached a dead end. International efforts should focus on a short-term cease-fire between Israel and Hamas that can pave the way for a sustainable armistice.
Studying Hamas's proposed hudna, or truce, should be an occasion for cool calculation and strategic thinking within Israel, rather than a way of continuing to avoid it.
The Obama administration will not find easily identifiable lessons and opportunities from the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, but a set of myths that may provoke early mistakes and vain hopes that are offered by some as easy ways out of current difficulties.
As Secretary of State Rice travels to the Middle East this week for another round of negotiations in the Israeli–Palestinian peace process, deep divisions and institutional decay on the Palestinian side remain the most daunting obstacles to peace. Ongoing Palestinian unity talks brokered by Egypt have little chance of success without a significant international push, concludes Nathan J. Brown.
