Damn, Zionista.

I missed this blog of yours. Perhaps you could've elicited more discussions by providing more content instead of posing your rhetorical either/or question re a "Zionist tool". ;~{)

As you no doubt recall(?).... I've posted several times about the Bahraini minister who got heat for suggesting an all- encompasing conference to discuss regional issues that would include Israel and Iran as particpants. Good to see that a higher profile Bahraini is promoting dialogue along these lines. The Crown Prince's emphasis on trade is yet another area of regional cooperation that can ease Israel's roadmap to regional acceptance and participation.

Unfortunately, the Israeli reliance on Americans running interference for them on fields of the ME has served to cripple such endeavors. One of the nascent signs of Israel acting in an independent manner was Olmert's utilization of Turkey as a mediator; whether or not his efforts were sincere.

At this point, there is no one in the Israeli leadership who has the foresight and/or the balls to go rogue and deal with Israel's neighbors on an equal footing. It's useless to keep blaming the Arabs for everything. The last thing Israel needs is more of the engineered/insured by the US "peace" deals as in the past.

However, for Israelis to tell their American friends to "butt out, we'll take it from here" would require an enormous seachange. There are some forward-thinking Israelis (Alon Liel) who could be on board with this approach but their influence is muted and marginal. Ditto for the American side although the author of this brilliant OpEd (HT Joshua Landis) is a pragmatic Jewish businessman who also thinks strategically about the big picture:

Little wonder that many warn that future wars will be fought over water, not land.

But can crisis be turned into opportunity? Could water, rather than land, be the way to cooperation and peace in the Middle East?

“We are great believers in the water issue as a catalyst for regional peace,” says Gilead Sher, Israel’s chief negotiator at the Camp David summit and the Taba peace talks in 1999-2001. “In all previous rounds of the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, the water section has been very close to concluding between the sides within the agreement framework.”

Others, like Jordanian Munqeth Mehyar, Palestinian Nader Al-Khateeb, and Israeli Gidon Bromberg, believe water provides new avenues for dialogue. Together, the three run EcoPeace, an organization that brings together Jordanian, Palestinian and Israeli environmentalists to promote sustainable development and build “Good Water Neighbors” in the Middle East.

Syria itself is also taking a leadership role. Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Naji Otri met recently with Iraqi Minister of Electricity Wahid Kareem in Damascus to discuss water resources. This came on the heels of a recent meeting in Baghdad of the energy ministers of Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria to discuss energy and security, which led to talk of a regional compact — a “new Baghdad Pact, without the U.S.,” as Zaab Sethna calls it. Sethna, co-founder of Northern Gulf Partners, working to bring investment to Baghdad, adds: “Water would be a natural area for cooperation.”

It is time to make peace on behalf of water..

[Look who is participating in this discussion. Too bad he doesn't raise these proposals when blogging on TEH Cafe. It would certainly (hopefully) change some of the stuck discussions here. I will attempt a diversion/hijacking when presented with an opportunity....will you join me?]

First, the U.S. should work with Turkey, Israel, Lebanon and Syria to convene a conference — in Istanbul. “The best way to resolve the water shortage is to bring water from super-abundant sources in the north — that is, Turkey,” says the Israeli scholar Bernard Avishai..
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/14/opinion/14iht-edweiss.html?_r=1&hpw

I can envision the particpation of the best young Israeli minds in efforts of this nature; thus helping to counter the brain drain.

Stanley A Weiss, the "founding chairman of Business Executives for National Security" concludes his piece by stating; ...But when it comes to water, every nation is in the same boat.. Water is only one of the " boats" shared by the neighbors; sustainable agriculture, environmental challenges and renewable energy resources are some of the others.

Who knows? Perhaps saavy business investment types from diverse cultures can help to lead the way.