Is the Middle East Quartet quivering in its quicksand quandary ?

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15th July, 2009

If you get the feeling that there is very little talk about a peace settlement between Israel and the Palestinians right now, you’re right.

Israeli-Palestinian peace talks backed by a quartet of international mediators — the European Union, the United States, the United Nations and Russia — are frozen.

As the EU’s Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana seems to be urging another important quarter of the Quartet, the UN, to impose a deadlined settlement on Israel and the Palestinians, how much longer can the Quartet hold it together? And what happens if it falls apart?

In this world of competing political interests, fluid as they are, you’d also be forgiven for concluding that most of the Quartet’s sympathies seem at present to lie with the Palestinians. I’m beginning to wonder if the Quartet has ANY future in this Middle East peace quest, given that the cracks are beginning to show.

RUSSIA TALKING TO HAMAS

For instance, although Tony Blair often refers to the Quartet’s policy as “not to talk to Hamas” and he cites Egypt as being a mediator, did you know that Russia DOES talk to Hamas? Moscow is the only Quartet member talking to Hamas, the group that controls Gaza but is snubbed by Israel and the West. Russia also has good contacts with Israel.

A few weeks ago Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said in Cairo that Moscow aimed to hold a Middle East peace conference before the end of 2009, a move backed by Egypt.

And Russia’s interests in Iran are well documented.  See this JP Post article, for some idea of the competing political complexities. (Disregard for a moment its derision of Obama’s ‘weakness’ re Tehran.)

THE USA’S OBAMA’S ‘SELF-REFLECTION’ CALL TO ISRAEL

President Obama, perhaps reminiscent of a youngster promoted beyond his experience, is pressing the Israelis ‘to engage in self-reflection’. To negate their last 60 years of reflection  so seemingly glibly is disconcerting to me as an outsider and must be infuriating for Netanyahu’s government.

Just a month ago Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “bowed” to “uncommon” Washington/ Obama pressure by finally giving his endorsement — with conditions — to the establishment of a Palestinian state.

But in a speech answering President Barack Obama‘s address to the Arab world, the right-wing leader’s defense of Jewish settlement on occupied land may fail to dispel tension with the White House, as the two men try to set new terms for the Middle East peace process in their first months in office.

THE EU & THE MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROCESS

IS THE EU DOING ANY GOOD IN THE MIDDLE EAST?

Well, it depends on who’s talking and on their viewpoint (and agenda).

From the Lebanese Daily Star, dismissive of Solana’s comments on a deadlined agreement –

“The call by the European Union’s foreign policy chief for the United Nations Security Council to recognize a Palestinian state by a certain deadline, even without any Israeli-Palestinian agreement, is intriguing and unimpressive.” – Rami G. Khouri concludes with this:

“A good first step is for the EU to suspend its participation in the Quartet, and then quietly let this diseased body die a merciful death. It is precisely the militants on both sides who use violence who have to be brought into the talks for peace and coexistence. The castrated American political system lacks the ability to act with conviction on the really tough issues and talk to all actors. Europe is not so emasculated, and should avoid at all costs following the US’ route to impotent self-marginalization.

Europe was once respected by all in the Middle East. Today it is largely ignored by all, which is unfortunate and unhelpful. It should not look for salvation or redemption from the international community, but rather in its own heart that still beats, even if faintly.”

THE UN

The Secretary General of the United Nations Ban ki-Moon has a heavy workload and the UN has a wide spectrum of interests, mostly in peaceful humanitarian fields.  So far this month there are NO official press releases on the Middle East situation. See the latest press releases from the UN.

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THE SIMPLE ANSWERS TO COMPLEX QUESTIONS

As Tony Blair is wont to repeat , “the answer is simple”. True, but the questions are complex.

1. Hamas still refuses to recognise Israel.

2. Hamas still runs Gaza.

3. A ‘two-state’ agreement means that Israel will be surrounded by a state of Palestine encompassing the West Bank and Gaza, which fails to recognise it.

4. Fatah, the PLO’s  “leadership” right now, irrespective of  Gaza’s Hamas leadership, is suffering internal, perhaps historical battles.  For instance remarks by estranged PLO leader Farouk Qaddoumi described as “deranged and senile”. Qaddoumi is a top representative of Fatah. He  accuses Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and former PA security chief Mohammed Dahlan of being accomplices in the “assassination” of Yasser Arafat. The resultant “exoneration” of Israel for Arafat’s death is “extremely serious”, according to Hakam Balawi, a senior PLO official closely associated with Abbas.

Farouk Kaddoumi (Wikipedia)

5. Abbas is the man the international community is presently dealing with, a situation which cannot be entirely satisfactory to Hamas.

6. Israel (and see here PRESS TV, so be aware) and Iran with the latter’s recent executions are ratcheting up tensions. Both countries have reasons to detract attention from internal political issues and to focus minds on an external enemy.

So, yes it’s simple.

All we ALL need is to be invaded by aliens to focus our minds on an external enemy.

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RELATED

Iran hangs 14 Sunni ‘rebels’

American Lebanese- born author says that lack of understanding is why western poolicies have “failed”. (And Middle Eastern policies? Not mentioned in this article.) Excerpt:

‘In Western societies, separation between religion and the state is very highly desirable, whereas in Islamic societies, politics and governance have to stem largely from religion,” Moussa writes. “This is a fundamental political and cultural difference between the West and Islam. In Islam, no matter how liberal the system is set to be, religion will still dominate the scene of political behavior.

Political issues are embedded in the Quran, so the practice of Islam is impossible without having control of the government too, Moussa says.

Similarly, aspects of Western society are not understood in the Middle East.

“Strict religious practices in Islam blind so many Muslims from seeing that life is ‘fun’ in the eyes of Westerners,” the author writes.’

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Official website – European Commission external relations

Cheney assassination plan. If you find it difficult to get your head around why it is illegal in western lands to assassinate the enemy who is trying to assassinate YOU – it’s simple really: the limits of democratic liberalism and the cute rules to which some of us are expected to comply – international law.

Whatever THAT is.

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Tags: EU, Fatah, Hamas, Israel, Middle East peace process quicksand, Obama warns Israel, Palestinians, PLO, Russia, UN, usa