Essential action
US engagement in resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict requires actions as well as words, writes Ibrahim Nafie
The Arab-American summit in Sharm El- Sheikh heralded the beginning of a new plan for reviving negotiations on the Palestinian- Israeli track at the heart of the Middle East conflict. The first summit of its kind under the current US administration brought President Bush together with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Hammed Bin Eissa Al-Khalifa, the king of Bahrain and chairman of the current session of the Arab League, King Abdallah II of Jordan, the second state to sign a peace treaty with Israel, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Abdallah Bin Abdel-Aziz, author of the Arab peace initiative adopted by the Arab summit in Beirut in March 2002, and Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen). The five leaders met against a backdrop of profound regional and international challenges that have combined to create a powerful incentive to halt deterioration in the region by resolving a whole raft of issues that continue to hamper aspirations for regional peace and stability.
Statements by Presidents Mubarak and Bush issued to the press indicate the summit appears to have accomplished its primary aim, which was to close the gap between Arab and American perspectives on the requirements for a fair peace settlement. While Bush reaffirmed the need to create a free and peaceful Palestinian state, Mubarak emphasised the need for Israel to end its occupation of Arab territories in accordance with international resolutions and to fulfil its obligations under the roadmap.
The Sharm El-Sheikh summit marked the final passing of the hands-off policy that Washington had adopted towards the Middle East since the collapse of Camp David II in July 2000. More significantly, in spite of all our criticisms of the policies and attitudes of this administration towards the Arabs, we must acknowledge that Bush is the first US president to formally recognise the need to create an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel and to commit his government to a practical vision towards this end.
Over the past few weeks the Bush administration worked to bring together the relevant parties to approve the roadmap drawn up and sponsored by the Quartet, consisting of the US, Russia, the EU and the UN. While Palestinian approval was immediately forthcoming Washington has had to bring considerable pressure to bear on the Sharon government. Moreover, Washington has apparently hardened itself against the many reservations the Sharon government has aired with regard to Israeli settlements and the Palestinians right to return. It is noteworthy, for example, that Washington rejected Israel's demand to expand existing settlements to accommodate "natural growth", a term used to disguise the appropriation of more land and the construction of what are in effect new settlements.
We note, too, that the current peace drive is taking place at a very delicate phase in Arab- US relations. Little over a month has passed since the war against Iraq and the US-British occupation of that nation. Tensions in the region were underlined by the recent terrorist bombings in Riyadh and Casablanca, targeting Western interests on the pretext of defending the causes of Iraq and the Palestinians. As I have said on numerous occasions, terrorist groups exploit Israeli belligerency against the Palestinians and Washington's unremittingly pro-Israeli policies as a cover for their actions, banking on the sympathy they believe they can win among broad segments of the Arab public. Terrorism can only be eliminated by eliminating its causes, which requires Washington to promote a clear and comprehensive vision for a just settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict and adopt an even-handed approach to the other issues that concern the peoples of this region.
The Arabs have done all they can to prepare the ground for a historic peace with Israel, based on Israeli withdrawal from Arab territories occupied in June 1967 and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. The Palestinians have fulfilled their obligations under the first phase of the roadmap, having announced their unconditional acceptance of all its provisions. Palestinian Prime Minister Abu Mazen has gone to enormous lengths to reach an agreement with the various Palestinian resistance factions to stop acts of armed resistance against Israeli targets so as to create a climate helpful to the negotiations over implementing the roadmap.
Palestinian resistance organisations have announced their willingness to declare a truce, perhaps for a year, on the condition that Israeli occupation forces halt their acts of violence and destruction against the Palestinian people.
In the light of everything the Arabs have done to ensure the success of the Sharm El- Sheikh and Aqaba summits, it remains for the US to ensure that the plans discussed at these summits are implemented to the letter. Above all, it must not allow modifications to be introduced into the roadmap under any guise. That would precipitate a process of erosion leading to the collapse of the entire enterprise.
Washington must also bear in mind that the Arab governments and peoples regard the roadmap as an internationally sponsored plan ultimately designed to usher in a new phase in which all nations and peoples of the region enjoy peace and stability, and they expect Washington to maintain its dedication to the full implementation of all the steps needed to realise this aspiration.
The foremost danger to the reputation and interests of the US, at this juncture, is that the Arabs reach the conclusion that Washington is merely acting to absorb popular anger over the occupation of Iraq, to "throw dust in the eyes", as we say. If, indeed, this proves to be the case, Washington will have forfeited all the efforts Arab leaders have exerted to help the US play an effective role in resolving the Middle East conflict. At which point proponents of a peaceful settlement will be left with no ammunition whatsoever to counter the arguments of those who claim that the US is too pro-Israel, and too anti-Arab, to act as an arbiter of peace. To avoid this spectre Washington must meet the expectations of Arab leaders and peoples, and prevail upon the Sharon government to fulfil all its obligations under the roadmap.
Al-Ahram Weekly Online : 5 -11 June 2003 (Issue No. 641)
Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2003/641/op1.htm