Interview with Ofer Bronchtein, President of the International Peace Forum, by Céline Lussato
“With American support or without it, the Palestinians will go to the UN to demand recognition of their state,” says the president of the International Peace Forum.
What do you expect from Obama’s speech on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
– What I’m waiting for is a concrete, precise, detailed position. Saying that he’s in favor of a Palestinian state, that it will be on the 1967 borders, or saying that the settlements are an obstacle to peace, we all know that, nothing new!
What’s needed now is determination, clarity and precision. Obama must tell us how he sees negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians, restarting on that basis and saying when these negotiations must begin and end according to a clear agenda.
A Palestinian state must be created on the basis that we all know: the same amount of territory conquered by Israel in 1967, which means territorial exchanges Certainly, East Jerusalem capital of the Palestinian state, West Jerusalem capital of Israel, the 1.5 km² of the Holy City managed by the international community, a fair and negotiated solution to the refugee question, a demilitarized Palestinian state, and in order to guarantee Israel’s security, why not consider its entry into NATO, accept the French proposal for an international force on the Jordanian-Palestinian border, and recognition of Israel by all its neighbors.
If the United States does not want to be discredited in the radical changes taking place in the Middle East, it must be clear, firm and precise. That’s what I expect from President Obama tomorrow.
It’s what you expect, but is it what you think it will say?
– I think he’s going to say part of what I expect. He’s going to repeat his commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state, his commitment to Israel’s security, that this Palestinian state must be on the 1967 borders, that Jerusalem must be the capital of both states, but I’m afraid he’s not going to tell us when and how we’re going to get there, and I’d like him to tell us exactly that. Otherwise, with or without American support, the Palestinians will go to the next United Nations General Assembly in September in New York to demand recognition of their state, which would put the United States on the spot. I think Obama will do everything in his power to avoid this eventuality, and that’s why he needs to be determined.
A few weeks ago, Nicolas Sarkozy proposed transforming the meeting scheduled for June in Paris into a conference to resume negotiations. Will Barack Obama follow suit?
– Since the 1993 Oslo Accords, Paris has been the capital of the economic aspects of the peace process. Donor countries have been meeting in Paris for almost 20 years. The June conference was scheduled, and Sarkozy wanted to give it a political dimension.
For the moment, his biggest obstacle is his good friend – and I say this cynically – Benyamin Netanyahu. I hope that the Arab Spring blowing through the region will lead the countries of the international community to agree to meet in Paris in June to give political encouragement to the creation of a Palestinian state. And I hope that Obama will accept Nicolas Sarkozy’s proposal.
Benyamin Netanyahu is due in Washington on the 20th, and Obama will also address the American Jewish lobby AIPAC on Sunday. Is it wise for Obama to speak before these two events?
– The agendas have been planned this way for many months. It’s good that President Obama is saying what he’s thinking and what he wants. We are at a time when the Americans want to remain a major player in the Middle East, but also at a time when they have succeeded in eliminating Bin Laden, thereby weakening their position vis-à-vis the Arab-Muslim world. Obama will have to show that he means what he said in Cairo three years ago. And it’s a good thing he said it before meeting Netanyahu, because that puts Netanyahu under an obligation to respond clearly and precisely. Otherwise, Netanyahu will be swept away by the winds of freedom that are sweeping through the Middle East, and he will be forgotten like Ben Ali, Mubarak and the rest. It’s Netanyahu’s decision: does he want to remain a shrewd politician, or go down in history as a statesman who finally brought peace to Israelis and Palestinians?
Is Obama a partner to the Palestinians on the road to statehood?
– Obama, who forced the Israelis to freeze settlements three years ago, Obama, who said he was in favor of a Palestinian state on the basis of 1967, Obama, who gave his Cairo speech, I hope won’t be a different man tomorrow. He has to show that he is determined to have a balanced position in the Middle East and to settle the conflict once and for all by giving guarantees on Israel’s security, by influencing Arab countries to recognize Israel, by creating a Palestinian state that has all the means to become a democratic and peaceful state.
