Kerry's Propowsed "Framework" for settling the Arab-Israeli conflict

Submitted by Yale (United States), Jan 10, 2014 at 09:57

Secretary Kerry is expected to offer his "framework" for resolving the century-old Arab-Israeli conflict in the next few weeks. It is hard to understand how he can believe that will advance the cause of peace. Kerry's "framework" is destined to fail because it must do one of three things relative to the last such offering, the "Clinton parameters": It must either 1) reiterate them, 2) move toward Israel's positions, or 3) move toward the Palestinians' positions. The Palestinians have already rejected the first option, and fortiori, they will reject the second.

The real problem is that if he chooses option 3, by rewarding them for their intransigence thirteen years ago, Kerry should also expect the Palestinians to pocket the additional concessions he will give them and then reject his "framework". The result, as predicted by people who actually understand the region, is that his involvement will have made the problem more difficult. Should the "framework" include even a limited "right of return" he will render the problem permanently unsolvable. Presenting his "framework" also backs Kerry into a corner. He cannot change his offering once it is announced without acknowledging that it was yet another major mistake.

For his sake, and for the sake of peace in the region, Kerry should refrain from further muddying the situation by adding his "framework".

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