U.S. Policy On Israeli-Palestinian Relations: Talk Is Cheap
To date, the Bush administration has talked a good game. Rhetoric is elevated when international pressure is most stark. For example, last January Secretary of State Colin Powell addressed the Israeli-Palestinian dilemma at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The backlash against the U.S. for its unilateralist orientation and for its rush to war on Iraq was palpable. General Powell tossed the world community a bone, noting that Israel must be sincere, that it must not offer a "phony state diced into a thousand different pieces."
Noam Chomsky recounts that the theme of the World Economic Forum was "Building Trust." No nation has seen public trust in its leaders decline as starkly as the United States. Yet as the dynamic in the Middle East evolves, comparing previous rhetoric with ongoing policy initiatives will prove insightful. Trust is earned, talk is cheap.
-ziggy
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REPRINT:
Colin
Powell Negates Propaganda That Arafat Was Entirely To Blame For Camp David
Failure
by ziggy 9:29pm Sun Jan 26 '03
Secretary of State Colin Powell said in Switzerland on Sunday that Israel must offer Palestinians more than a "phony state diced into a thousand different pieces." What will surely be missed by the corporate U.S. media is that this statement flies directly in the face of the line towed by most U.S. and Israeli officials regarding the failed Camp David Accords.
Following the failure of the Taba talks in January, 2001, most U.S. government officials have been complicit in propagating the myth that Arafat was 100% to blame for the failure of the Camp David talks. The general media distortion has been that Arafat was offered an unbelievably sound offer, that former Prime Minster Barak went farther than any Israeli leader to date, and that the complete collapse of the negotiations was no fault of Israeli nor American positions.
The truth, on the other hand, is something quite different. Camp David was a disaster on account of games played by all sides. But you'd never know that if you were an average American media consumer. Even the Israeli press was more fair in revealing the details of the failed negotiation. That's par for the course. Israeli media covers the failings of Israeli policy in terms that would shock most Americans given the drivel that is called news in the United States.
It is well documented that offers presented and hinted at during Camp David were anything but an amazing deal. Today's astounding statement from Secretary of State Colin Powell is tacit acknowledgement of this fact.
Time will tell how serious the Bush administration is when it comes to making peace. But this statement from Powell is certainly unusual.
To learn more about the history of the talks, see the following articles:
These articles have insight from Robert Malley, who was on the Clinton team at Camp David. Malley's perspective is interesting when contrasted with Clinton's head of negotiations, Dennis Ross. Ross went on to a position with the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He's been the most authoritative U.S. voice propagating the lie that the Camp David accords process fell apart only because of Arafat. Again, all parties share blame for the failure, but Dennis Ross has his think tank gigs to watch out for. It's interesting to note how Dennis Ross talks about Robert Malley. Here's a good example, and more background from the Washington Institute point of view.
Students of media: Consider reviewing how Powell's statement is reported in Israeli versus American media. I would not be surprised if Israeli reportage is more direct, as what appears below. You will not find the statement in the first paragraph, that's for sure. It might be obscured still further by various other "tricks of the trade."
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Ha'Aretz Story:
Jan. 27, 2003
Powell: Israel Must Offer Palestinians More Than a 'Phony State'
By Aluf Benn, Ha'aretz Correspondent, and Agencies
Source: click here for url
A special team from the prime minister's bureau, headed by Dov Weisglass, is finalizing the Israeli version of the "road map" in consultation with the Defense and Foreign Ministries. The Israeli peace plan, which Prime Minister Ariel Sharon hopes to bring before the next government, will be Jerusalem's interpretation of the speech made by U.S. President George Bush on June 24, 2002 and will constitute Israel's official response to the road map put forth by the Quartet - the U.S., the United Nations, the European Union and Russia.
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