Obama's diplomatic revolution in the Middle East
In the opening days of his administration it appears that Obama has stared a diplomatic revolution in the Middle East. Obama has stated that Israel must cease its blockade of Gaza and allow humanitarian supplies and that the Americans need to help the Palestinian people rebuild. Also Obama has named George Mitchell, an Arab American, to be in charge of seeking a two state solution in Middle East. Mitchell is a far superior choice than Dennis Ross, who was seen by the Palestinians as being too much on Israel's side. Mitchell along with James Jones makes it appear to the moderate Arabs that at least Obama is willing to take a impartial stance in any future Israeli-Palestinian talks.
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Mitchell is an excellent choice. As M.J. Rosenberg points out on the front page of today's Cafe, Mitchell successfully brokered the "two state solution" that ended the Troubles.
The Israel-Palestine dynamic is much more complex and, in my mind, will require both creativity and balance -- traits conspicuously absent that last eight years. An op-ed in today's NYT by, of all people, Muammar Qaddafi, maintains that the only workable end game is a single state.
This argument is already being torn apart by both sides, primarily because of Qaddafi's authorship. But it speaks to the fact that states in the Middle East tend to bear little resemblance to the region's ethnic heritage.
January 23, 2009 9:01 AM | Reply | Permalink