by John M. Curtis
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Copyright May 16, 2009
All Rights Reserved.

             Meeting for the first time Monday, May 18, there’s much anticipation between President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu.  Netanyahu has given Barack a golden opportunity to test his chops at Mideast diplomacy, where there’s new hope Netanyahu will soften his diplomatic stand.  Since taking office April 1, Bibi hs shown no willingness to negotiate for a Palestinian State.  Netanyahu has been cool to a “two-state solution,” believing Palestinians should first spend their time building their infrastructure, economy, and, most importantly, resolving the current split in their own population.  When Hamas took Gaza by force June 12, 2007, the Palestinian people were split in two, one controlled by the late Yasser Arafat’s successor Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank and the other by Ismail Haniyeh in Gaza.  Both sides can’t agree on anything.

            Since taking over as prime minister, the hard-nosed Netanyahu has been hyped in the media as opposed to a Palestinian state.  Like his now comatose predecessor former Prime Minister and Kadima Party founder Ariel Sharon, Netanyahu too will seize the moment and negotiate the best possible peace deal for Israel.  Few Israeli or U.S. politicians don’t want their name etched into the elusive Pantheon of Mideast peacemaking.  Obama will find Netanyahu a chip off the old block, educated in Cambridge at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  White House officials, including Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton have both signaled a new tough negotiating posture toward Israel.  While no one was a better friend to Israel than former President George W. Bush, Obama too will bend over backwards to accommodate its No. 1 Mideast ally.

            Netanyahu faces considerable opposition from his Likud Party and other conservative groups that make up his governing coalition.  His top priority is Israeli national security at a time when Iran marches relentlessly toward nuclear weapons.  Obama walks a tightrope reassuring Netanyahu about Iran while, at the same time, urging Israel to join the multilateral approach attempting to restrain Iran’s nuclear ambitions.  Obama will receive Netanyahu’s commitment toward a two-state solution as long as the U.S. can guarantee Israel’s security.  “I think and believe that Netanyahu will tell Obama this government is prepared for a political process that will result in a two peoples living side by side in peace and mutual respect,” former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak told Channel 2 TV.  Obama seeks a commitment from Netanyahu on a two-state solution with Palestinians.

            Painting Netanyahu as hard-nosed helps Israel’s negotiating posture and, simultaneously, gives Obama more international leverage.  Any Netanyahu concession will be perceived an historic victory for Obama, trying to do what no other president has accomplished since Israel’s founding in 1948.  Mideast diplomacy serves as welcomed distraction from more economic bad news.  General Motors’ expected bankruptcy will shake American confidence to the core at home and abroad.  Mideast peacemaking, an impossible task by most yardsticks, pales in comparison to the task of righting the nation’s and indeed the global economy.  Obama must sell Netanyahu on the linkage between Mideast peacemaking and the multinational cooperation needed to contain a growing Iranian nuclear threat.  While the press focuses on Netanyahu, the biggest obstacle to peace remains the Palestinian civil war.

            Obama and Netanyahu must find a way of helping Abbas unify the Palestinians population.  As former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice found out, you can’t make peace with only half the Palestinians.  When Palestinians went to the polls and voted for Hamas in carefully monitored fair-and-free elections Jan. 26, 2006, they won a decisive majority in the Palestinian parliament.  Bush officials ignored Hamas parliamentary victory, only recognizing Abbas’ Palestinian Authority.  Obama should brainstorm with Netanyahu on how to reconcile Palestine’s currently split government.  Ignoring Hamas and negotiating only with Abbas won’t reconcile the two warring factions.  Putting heat on Netanyahu won’t solve the rift between Fatah and Hamas.  No comprehensive peace can take place with half the Palestinian people.  Hamas must buy into any workable, long-term peace deal.

            Painting Netayahu as an obstacle to peace plays well in the press but doesn’t solve the fundamental problem of a divided Palestine.  Obama should spend his time with Netanyahu figuring out the best way to resolve the Palestinian divide.  Following his meeting with Netanyahu, Obama plans on meeting with Abbas and Jordan’s King Hussein.  Both leaders should stop pointing fingers at Israel and figure out a way to reconcile Palestinians.  “For the U.S., Israeli-Palestinian relations is the top priority.  But for Israel, Iran is the most pressing issue,” said Eylan Gbiboa, an expert on U.S-Israeli relations at Bar-Ilan University.  Winning concessions on a two-state solution from Netanyahu will score points with Palestinians and other Arab states.  Ultimately, Palestinians must resolve their civil war before the U.S. can help broker a lasting Mideast peace.

About the Author

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news.  He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.

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