Iran-Wary Arabs Court Israel, U.S. Jews
munaeem | 12 February, 2007 19:47
Iran's growing influence and nuclear program has led to Saudi Arabia and other Arab states to move diplomatically closer to Israel, USA Today reported.
Prince Turki meeting Jewish leader in Washington (Photo: www.col.org.il )
Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have been in more contact with Israel and pro-Israel Jewish groups in the United States, as seen last month when Saudi Arabia's departing ambassador to the United States set a precedent by attend a Washington reception sponsored by American Jewish organizations, the newspaper said.
The shift is in response to Iran and its influence, said Judith Kipper, a Middle East expert at the Council on Foreign Relations.
"What really concerns pro-U.S. Arab states is that Iran is setting the political agenda in the region," Kipper said.
However, only three of 21 Arabic countries --Egypt.
Jordan and Mauritania -- have recognized Israel as a country since it was founded in 1948.
Last week, Saudi Arabia also was the site for a meeting between the rival Palestinian Fatah and Hamas parties to form a unity government that will discuss peace options with Israel in Washington this month.
Listen to Putin
munaeem | 12 February, 2007 04:03
THESE are clearly unprecedented times in international politics. And despite the harsh manner of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s speech at Munich notwithstanding, it did point to most of the reasons responsible for the situation. Except for the highest offices in Washington, there is near unanimous international consensus that the Bush administration’s attempt at employing the neocon ideology has been a marked failure, of colossal proportions, with disastrous economic, political and humanitarian repercussions.
It is clear that over the last five years especially, the United States has pursued a hegemonic, uni-polar agenda, setting dangerous international precedents while trying to establish its writ as the world’s sole centre of power. The Russian president is spot on in implying that because of America’s bypassing the United Nations in using military force, weaker nations’ insecurity is pushing them to arms races. More so because “nobody can hide behind international law” anymore.
The sharp rebuke from the American contingent was no doubt predictable. But those defending Washington must have noted how their rhetoric reeked of double standards. It is simply not possible to deny that America has “overstepped its borders in all spheres” and “imposed itself on other states”. It is also hard to rebut the claim that the US has picked fight after fight “without achieving a full-fledged solution to any of them”. And in doing so it has left behind a trail of needless death and destruction, with no justification whatsoever.
Furthermore, as lopsided as Washington’s foreign policy has been, the domestic political spillover is not less grim and long-term. Like the rest of the world, America’s polity’s pundits are realising how the constitution empowers the seat of the president to potentially wreak bloody havoc in all corners of the globe, in face of mounting domestic, international and even Congressional disapproval.
Despite these facts, there is no admission of mistakes having been made from Washington, remorse being a far-off thing. That means any attempt at addressing many of the US-created disasters is definitely not around the corner.
President Putin has done the right thing by calling a spade a spade. Other world leaders should bolster this stance, lest the unprecedented times take more turns for the worse.
Source : Khaleejtimes' Editorial
'Israel yet to decide stance on Mecca'
munaeem | 12 February, 2007 03:49
Israel neither accepts nor rejects Hamas and Fatah agreements made Thursday in Mecca regarding a unity government, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said at the opening of Sunday's cabinet meeting.
"Israel insists that all of the Quartet's demands are met, as they were presented in the past," said the prime minister, referring to demands that the Palestinian Authority accept the existence of Israel, recognize past peace agreements made with Israel and renounce terrorism.
"We, like the international community, are studying what exactly was achieved, what was said, and what is the basis on which the agreement rests, if it exists, and if it's complete," Olmert said.
Senior government officials in Jerusalem said Saturday night that the Hamas-Fatah national unity government agreement reached in Mecca could jeopardize a trilateral Israel-Palestinian-US meeting scheduled for next week.
Senior Israeli officials said Abbas's agreement to and appointment of a new government that does not accept the three international benchmarks made him a partner with Hamas, and called into question future Israeli cooperation with him.
She said that the international community must "show determination and say clearly to the Palestinians that they must accept the three benchmarks.
Don't give legitimacy to unclear and clever agreements. You must impose the conditions on the Palestinians, and the truth must be told: the world must reject vague formulas.
