Not a Bad Deal

It was reported Sunday that the U.S. was able to secure from Israel a 90 day freeze on settlement construction in the West Bank. The freeze does not include construction in East Jerusalem. Construction in East Jerusalem is a major point of contention. Israeli construction there and elsewhere had brought peace talks to the brink of collapse when Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas threatened to withdraw from the talks unless settlement construction stopped. Israel declared the freeze was a "one time only" deal.

In return for acceding to the U.S. request for a temporary halt in construction, the U.S. agreed to provide Israel 20 advanced fighter jets and other unspecified aid. The U.S. will also continue to oppose Palestinian statehood. When you consider that in 90 days when the freeze ends Israel is free to resume construction, it is not a bad deal. They have committed to nothing.

There is the possibility that an agreement can be arrived at between Israel and the Palestinians in 90 days. Given Netanyahu's resolve to build in the West Bank and Palestinian determination to keep that from happening, the chances of a deal being reached are remote. Years of negotiating have not resolved the issue. 90 days will not help much. The best that can be reasonably expected is the exchange of a few scraps of land, an agreement to keep negotiating, and perhaps a slightly less ambitious Israeli development plan for the near future.

If Israel resumes construction in the West Bank when the freeze ends, and it will, they will still get the aide, the fighter jets, and continued U.S. support in the U.N. They would have gotten them anyway. Israel could march the Palestinians into the sea and still rely on the U.S. for support and they know it.

At least Israel is willing to talk. They don't have to.