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The Peace Talks

(Ha'aretz) Yoel Marcus - It's been a long time since negotiations elicited as many smiles and as positive an atmosphere as the Washington-Sharm-Jerusalem round of talks. The optimism is dictated from above, i.e., by Obama, who has decided to take our subject in hand, demonstrating a blatant change in his almost hostile attitude toward Israel. When Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declares that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas are serious in their intentions to renew the peace process, for the time being this represents more a wish of Obama's than a realistic impression of the round of talks thus far. Netanyahu demonstrated leadership when he agreed to freeze construction in the territories for 10 months. He also made a promise to the Israeli public that he meant 10 months, "and not one day more." The Palestinians refused to enter direct talks and wasted nine months. Now that the sides have begun to speak directly under Obama's sponsorship, the entire issue of the freeze as a condition to talks is passe.
2010-09-17 09:08:23
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