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NYT “New ‘two-state solution’ to Palestine problem emerges”

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New attention is paid to a plan that was discarded as unrealistic.
Western leaders including Biden, Sunnack, and Macron all emphasized
Discussions have also begun within the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the think tank.

The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 1st (local time) that the two-state plan to achieve peace in the Middle East through the creation of a Palestinian state, which had been treated as an unrealistic plan following the Gaza War, is gaining new momentum.

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President Joe Biden said of the Gaza war last week, “There must be a perspective after the war. “Our position is a two-state solution,” he emphasized. British Prime Minister Lissy Sunnack and French President Emmanuel Macron also said that the two-state solution is a sure way to achieve peace.

As the worst bloodshed in the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict unfolds, a new solution from the Obama administration, which both Israel and Palestine regard as abandoned, is emerging.

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The two-state solution, which would allow Israel and Palestine to coexist as adjacent independent states, is receiving new attention not only among diplomatic experts in the United States, Britain, and France, but also in Israel and Palestine. Part of the reason is that there is no other alternative.

◆A background that newly highlights the fact that there is no alternative to establishing peace

Gilead Sher, who participated in Middle East peace negotiations from the 1990s to the early 2000s when Israel and Palestine came closest to a two-state solution, said, “We cannot ignore a situation where Israel and Hamas clash every other year. “If the United States takes the lead, as President Biden said, there is a chance of success,” he emphasized.

There are many hurdles to overcome before the two-state solution is achieved. A representative example is the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, where Palestinians expect the creation of a state. Another challenge is the rise of far-right forces in Israel who oppose the creation of a Palestinian state and seek annexation of the West Bank. They believe that they can expand political support by driving out Palestinians.

Sher pointed out several problems with the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. He said that the two sides should not start with detailed negotiations for the creation of two states, but rather start by easing political confrontation, and existing politicians who have opposed the negotiations should be replaced. He emphasized that the Gaza Strip must be disarmed, above all by neutralizing Hamas.

Israeli officials say the war in Gaza will last for months or more and that talks of a peace deal will have to wait until the guns stop shooting. But discussions about the post-war process are already beginning within Israel’s think tanks and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Even as Israel’s attack on Gaza and violence in the Gaza Strip intensify, Palestinians’ expectations for the creation of a state are growing significantly. Some Palestinians argue that Hamas’ attack on the 7th of last month shows that Israel will not be able to avoid war without the creation of a Palestinian state.

Nidal Fokaha, Secretary General of the Palestine Peace Coalition, a non-profit organization based in Ramallah, West Bank, said, “The incident on the 7th led to the need for a more creative and innovative solution to the creation of two states. “It is an impossible goal without political will,” he said.

The European Union (EU) requested last week to hold an international peace conference. It was led by Spain, which hosted the 1991 Madrid Middle East Peace Conference. Arab countries, including Egypt, are also pursuing peace negotiations.

◆Pushed for two years during the Obama era and then gave up… Criticism of “Don Quixote-like ideas”

The United States will play a central role in peace negotiations. During the Obama administration, Secretary of State John Kerry went back and forth between the two sides to mediate in 2013 and 4, but then gave up. Even at the time, some of President Obama’s staff criticized it as a Don Quixote-like idea.

During the time of President Donald Trump, the United States focused on resolving the Palestinian issue by normalizing relations between Israel and Arab countries. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the time responded favorably to this strategy. Some extreme right-wing members of his coalition cabinet strongly opposed the creation of a Palestinian state. Prime Minister Netanyahu also went back and forth, saying that he agreed to the creation of a state with limited force, and then saying that he was opposed to even that.

Jason Greenblatt, who was special envoy to the Middle East during the Trump era, pointed out, “The biggest blind spot of the two-state solution is that it does not address the threat posed by opposition to Israel’s survival by some Palestinians and external forces.”

He said that the Trump administration’s Middle East peace policy focuses on strengthening Israel’s security. In 2020, during the Trump administration, the Abraham Accords were signed between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain. This agreement did not address the issue of creating a Palestinian state.

◆Trump focuses only on establishing diplomatic relations with Israel and Middle Eastern countries

The Biden administration also largely accepted the Trump administration’s blueprint. He promoted the establishment of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia, a leading country in the Arab world, and Israel. These negotiations have been halted due to the war in Gaza. If negotiations resume, a two-state solution may emerge. Saudi Arabia told U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that the creation of a Palestinian state should be a step in the process of establishing diplomatic relations with Israel.

Arab countries hope that the creation of a Palestinian state will be achieved during the peace process following the Gaza war. This is especially true in Egypt and Jordan, which are concerned about the influx of millions of refugees from the Gaza Strip.

Gais Al-Omari, a senior researcher at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said, “President Biden’s idea is to create a framework to involve them in resolving the Gaza issue.” He emphasized that negotiations can progress only when the current leadership of Israel and Palestine is replaced.

Participating in Netanyahu’s coalition government are far-right forces who call the West Bank, occupied by Israel since 1967, the Biblical region of Judea and Samaria.

◆This is possible only when all hardliners in Israel and Palestine are replaced.

The Netanyahu government is rapidly increasing the number of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. After the Hamas attack, attacks on Palestinians by settlers and the Israeli military increased.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (87) lost the trust of the Palestinian people a long time ago. Distrust has grown further with the cancellation of the 2021 election results. There is also criticism that the Palestinian Authority has been weakened due to Netanyahu’s separate rule of Gaza and the West Bank while fostering Hamas.

Hundreds of thousands of Israeli settlers settled in the West Bank after Yasir Arafat, head of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), who came close to concluding an agreement with Israel in 2000 during the Bill Clinton administration, refused to negotiate at the last minute.

Violence between Israeli settlers and Palestinians prevented subsequent peace negotiations from resuming. It is currently difficult to predict what Israel’s expectations will be for future peace negotiations, including Hamas’ barbaric attacks and Israel’s extreme response.

Special envoy Dennis Ross, who was in charge of mediating peace negotiations during the Clinton and Obama administrations, said, “Hamas has shown that it is too dangerous to be in charge of a Palestinian state. “However, it is unclear whether we will be able to guide Palestine as we want after neutralizing Hamas,” he emphasized.

Senior researcher Omari, who advised Palestine in the Middle East peace negotiations, pointed out that a two-state solution is emerging.

He said, “The situation is similar to 9/11. As great things happen, everyone thinks there must be a change, but no one knows what kind of change is needed. You have to start from past experience. “It is the only way to know the future,” he emphasized.

Israel-Palestine War

Source: Donga

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