Syrian-Israeli Negotiations Pause For Election Outcomes
By AMINE AIT-CHAALAL
Published: September 24, 2008
Published: September 24, 2008
With his characteristic clear-sightedness and knowledge of history, General Charles de Gaulle used to say that "one should not insult the future." He also believed that simple ideas were needed to address "the complicated Middle East." In the immediate future two important events will have an influence on the situation in the Middle East: the change of prime minister in Israel and the U.S. presidential elections in the United States.
It is important to analyze the negotiations in progress between Syria and Israel as part of the peace process in the Middle East. The basic principle of those negotiations consists of returning the Golan Heights to Syria, in exchange for safety guarantees for Israel.
However, in a region where everything is connected, it would be illusory to hope to solve one problem while neglecting others. Palestine-Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran: each situation is specific and, to a great extent, linked to the others. A partial and divided peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will not substitute for a global peace.
The latest set of indirect negotiations between Syria and Israel nevertheless represents significant progress. It indicates the return of a process, negotiated between two rival states. If Tzipi Livni, the current foreign minister and head of the leading Kadima party, becomes leader of Israel's government, will she firmly uphold the process with Syria and the Palestinians that Ehud Olmert put in place? We can hope so, though of course, nothing is certain.
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