For Mideast peace, think bigger

Regional stability involves more than the Israelis and Palestinians.

from the December 3, 2007 edition

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3. If the Palestinian-Israeli peace is to work, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas needs support for it from a strong majority of Palestinians. If Syria is brought aboard the peace train, it can help him win that support. If it is not, he never will. Syria's participation is also essential if Lebanon is to be part of the final peace.

Did I mention this is a huge gamble? Of course it is! But it is one that can be won. Inside the region, there is disillusionment and distrust – but there is also war-weariness, a strong desire for normal life and livelihoods, and a recognition that all sides need to make concessions to win that.

On the Palestinian side, Hamas may look like a deal-busting force. But its leaders have said in the past they would let Mr. Abbas negotiate for all Palestinians, and so far, their opposition to Annapolis has been much more through large peaceful marches than (as in the 1990s) through violence. That is good news, and should be built on.

It is true, too, that the situations in Iraq and Iran strongly affect the countries along the Israeli-Arab seam. But that is a two-way street. A working, comprehensive Israeli-Arab peace will make dealing constructively with Iraq and Iran much easier in the future.

Meanwhile, in the world outside the Middle East, support for a final, complete Israeli-Arab peace is already very strong. All major world powers today have large stakes in the region. They need the peacemaking to succeed. If Bush's current peace gamble fails, that will seriously dent America's power and standing around the whole world.

At and since Annapolis, Abbas and Israeli premier Ehud Olmert have shown their willingness to reframe long-contentious issues in a way designed to build the constituencies for peace. Syria and other Arab states have shown their readiness for serious engagement.

And Bush? He took one good step at Annapolis by laying new stress on the need for a final-status peace, not simply further interim measures. But now, he needs to extend that vision to all of Israel's neighbors, not just the Palestinians, and to clearly articulate America's own compelling interest in this peace.

The stakes could not be higher. The world watches, and hopes.

Helena Cobban is a Friend in Washington with the Friends Committee on National Legislation. Her views are her own.

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