At today’s press conference with PM Sharon, Bush made three major announcements on changes in US policy: First, that he supports the construction of the security fence, since he views it as temporary. Second, that Palestinians need to drop the issue of right of return. Third, he called a possible return to pre-1967 borders “unrealistic.”
In my view, this is the last nail in the coffin of the Roadmap to Peace, and any hope that the U.S. would use its influence to pressure the two sides to take the steps needed to get back to the negotiating table. It looks like the Adminsitration has finally thrown its hands in the air, given up on the Middle East violence, and decided it we will back our ally, Israel, without hesitation, without question.
Questions:
Does this announcement, in fact, mean that the Bush Administration is content to play a divisive role in the Middle East, rather than even trying to be a uniter?
Could the Administration have decided that it is no longer worth investing any political capital in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, seeing as how the Roadmap has flopped and we are now more deeply engaged in Iraq than the White House anticiapted?
Noting that Mubarak just visited with Bush, could it be that the Arab side has also given up on any hope of calming the violence within the foreseeable future? Will Arab states see Bush’s anouncement as having no damage to the cause of peace, or complete metaphysical damage? (Thanks to John McLaughlin for the terminology)
Well he is uniting the Arabs against the US… he is uniting the World against the US… he is uniting Shia and Sunni in Iraq… he is uniting terrorist organizations that didn’t work together before. I think he is a Uniter.
Expect a lot of hardline Arabs saying “I told you so” after this Israel “can do whatever they want” endorsement by Bush.
Like I have said in many other threads... a little bit of criticising Israel goes a long way with Arabs... Bush is never willing to do even a little. He should at least try to fake that he is a bit "neutral".
Actually, I’d wager this is the opposite – the Administration is trying to shore up support from its Christian fundamentalist base, by showing that they are committed to helping Poor Innocent Israel against the Hordes of Evil Brown-Skinned Non-Christians. :rolleyes:
If the Christian fundamentalists didn’t have such a chubby for Israel (because, after all, Jesus can’t come back until Israel is at peace), Bush wouldn’t give two toots about Sharon, methinks.
For some reason I had understood the restoration of 1967 borders to be the center piece of the so-called “Road Map to Peace.” If the President now says that the restoration of those borders is unrealistic, without bothering to spell out him self or through some sort of briefing white paper what portions can be realistically restored and what portions can’t (Golan Heights?), then it looks as if the “Road Map” is now relegated to the trash heap. As far as the fence is concerned, it seems to me that just as soon as the President announces that the fence can be tolerated as a temporary measure it is a defacto acceptance of the fence and annexation of some pretty substantial hunks of the West Bank as a permanent situation.
I suppose the really prescient should have seen this coming last night when the President lumped Saddam’s Iraq and the present Iraqi insurrectionists / freedom fighters, Al Qada, and Hamas together as the enemy in the war against terrorism. I do question, however, how depriving the already desperate Palestinians of what ever hope the “Road Map” provided and further aggravating the people who identify with them on religious and ethnic grounds does anything but pretty much guarantee more suicide bombings, more airplane high-jackings, more kidnapings and more trouble spots for US troops to deal with and more recruits for the Jahadists.
I don’t see that it does any good except the short term good of bolstering Sharon’s hand in Israeli politics and does a whole world of harm. If the President needs chaos in the Middle East to increase his chances of reelection as a “War President” this ought to provide if not chaos, then a lot of sullen people inclined to do the US and Israel a whole lot of harm.
Has their been anything out of the State Department indicating this was coming or do we chalk it up as the product of Carl Rove and the "Red Heifer,"and restoration of the Temple as the prerequisite to the Second Coming types?