November 28, 2007
Mideast: Bush Pledges Personal Involvement But Few Trips
The world was treated to the sight of a united President Bush, Mahmoud Abbas and Ehud Olmert once again today after more meetings following by a brief photo-op on the White House lawn.
"Yesterday was an important day, and it was a hopeful beginning," Bush said of Tuesday's Annapolis Conference on Israeli-Palestinian relations. "No matter how important yesterday was, it's not nearly as important as tomorrow and the days beyond."
The Israelis and Palestinians along with the U.S. have been emphasizing that the work ahead will be painful but necessary to reach the goal of final agreement on a two-state solution by 2009. Washington is taking on the main oversight role in the negotiations after years of what administration critics say was neglect of the region.
The collegiality and commitment on display by Israeli Prime Minister Olmert and Palestinian President Abbas during their visit here might be cause for optimism, but both men will have to put that momentum to work in the weeks ahead in order to keep the world engaged in what is already widely seen as an impossible task.
In an interview with CNN that aired today, Bush insisted that he had a personal interest in seeing the negotiations through. But, he added, "We can't dictate the results."
While the commitment to the peace effort is fresh, the sticking points are anything but. Israel has expressed a newly flexible -- or resigned, depending on one's point of view -- attitude toward Palestinians' demands on restoring the pre-1967 borders and splitting up Jerusalem into two capital cities. But those concessions, which are just a couple of the Arab world's many demands, are off the table if the PLO is unable to get a handle on extremist violence.
Many observers argue that Abbas' government, which is at odds with a shadow government in Gaza run by Hamas, is nowhere close to being capable of such a clampdown. The Palestinian government is badly hampered by lack of funds and infrastructure. Critics say the Palestinians also lack the desire to crack down on terrorists in their midst.
Reiterating a position he's stated many times before, Bush said that Palestinians had to choose peace in order to attain their own sovereign nation.
Laying out "what the state should look like," Bush said, would allow "people like President Abbas the chance to go to the Palestinians and say, 'You can have their vision of violence or this vision of peace, take your pick.'"
While Bush said he would remain personally involved in the issue for the rest of his presidency, he dispelled any notion that he might be engaging in shuttle diplomacy himself. "Going to a region is not going to unstick negotiations," he said.
Washington was able to lure even anti-Israel Arab nations to Annapolis yesterday because of growing concern in the region about Iran's dominance. Asked by Wolf Blitzer how the U.S. would respond if Iran attacked Israel, Bush said, "I have made it clear that absolutely we will support our ally Israel if attacked by Iran." The president resisted when pushed for a more explicit answer, saying finally, "You're asking me to answer a hypothetical."
Yesterday's summit was criticized for the inclusion of Syria, considered a state sponsor of terrorism, and of several nations that refuse to recognize Israel.
"We wanted to make sure as many Arab nations came as possible," Bush said when asked why Syria was invited.
When asked about Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal's stated refusal to shake hands with the Israelis, Bush said, "I think it was a very important signal that Saudi Arabia was at the meeting. I was so pleased that His Majesty sent the foreign minister, and I'm thankful that his majesty did that."
"Things don't change overnight. It's a significant step that Saudi Arabia was there," he added.
Posted at 5:58 PM
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Bush Administration, Iran, Israel, Middle East, Palestinians, President Bush
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