Israel's offer is a non-starter
ONE critic appropriately says that the far-right Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu's speech on June 14, "accepting" the creation of a Palestinian state, was very much like taking a visitor's hand in welcoming him but refusing to allow the rest of the visitor's body into his house.
Prime Minister Netanyahu offered his "support" for Palestinian statehood for the first time, but only:
-If it was demilitarised,
-If the Palestinian state had no control over its airspace, and
-If the Palestinians accepted Israel as a Jewish state.
The Palestinians can have their own flag and even their own national anthem but they cannot have a national armed force to defend themselves, they cannot have control of their air space and they most certainly cannot lay any claim to any part of Jerusalem as that will be the united capital of Israel. All that the Palestinians need to do to recieve this "gift" from Israel is to recognise Israel as a Jewish state.
The Jewish recognition, of course, means that the right to return for Palestinians is no longer part of the equation and in the longer term most probably means a forced exodus of Arab Israeli citizens to the new Palestinian state (something already recommended by Tzipi Livni), but the right of the Jewish diaspora to settle in Israel remains.
Failure to comply with all of the above will demonstrate to the rest of the world that the Palestinians simply don't want peace.
He did not address the geographical area of a Palestinian state and referred to the West Bank, the territory presumed to be the bulk of a Palestinian state, by its biblical name of Judea and Samaria, declaring it "the land of our forefathers."
Nearly 300,000 Israelis live in the West Bank, in addition to 180,000 living in Jewish neighbourhoods in east Jerusalem. He said that limited building should be allowed to continue within existing settlements to accommodate "natural growth" in response to Obama's rejection of the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements in Palestinian land.
He knows that Obama is personally interested in resolving the stalemate. Obama said on June 4 in Cairo that the only resolution "is for the aspirations of both sides to be met through two states […] That is in Israel's interest, Palestine's interest, America's interest and the world's interest. That is why I intend personally pursue this outcome with all the patience that the task requires."
He does not believe in a two-state solution but has to adjust his policy with the attitude of Obama's administration. Accordingly, he came out with a proposal that he knew would be rejected by the Palestinians, but he can say to the White House that he had placed a proposal to the Palestinians for a two-state solution.
Since assuming office in March, Netanyahu has been caught between American demands to begin peace talks with the Palestinians and his hardline stance. Against that background, Netanyahu is in an awkward situation, in which he cannot object to the two-state solution and has to make an offer with impossible conditions.
Saeb Erakat, a Palestinian negotiator, reportedly said: "He (Netanyahu) did not accept a Palestinian state. Instead he announced a series of conditions and qualifications that render a viable, independent and sovereign Palestinian state impossible."
The White House reaction was limited, focusing on what it called "the important step forward" of Netanyahu's support for a two-state solution.
The EU -- supporting a two-state solution which calls for a Palestinian state living side by side with Israel in peace -- said that Netanyahu's comments were "a step in the right direction," but not enough to increase relations with Israel to a higher level. EU has urged Tel Aviv to take more steps toward peace with Palestinians.
European Union officials said on June 15 that they will delay any improvement in relations with Tel Aviv since the Israeli government has ignored repeated EU demands for a freeze in settlement activities in the occupied West Bank and for lifting of the deadly Gaza blockade.
Netanyahu is a shrewd, street-smart and ruthless politician. He targeted his speech for two audiences -- the Jewish lobby (AIPAC) in the US and the White House. The conditions he set out will satisfy the Jewish lobby in the US and his conditional acceptance of a two-state solution will make the White House happy.
Netanyahu has ignored the fact that Arab countries will never recognise Israel because the proposal is against the Saudi king's initiative for peace in 2002, which stipulates normalising relations between the entire Arab region and Israel, in exchange for a complete withdrawal from the occupied territories including East Jerusalem.
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