NEGOTIATING WITH YOURSELF:

US, Israel agree on disengagement terms (Herb Keinon, Mar. 30, 2004, Jerusalem Post)

[B]oth sides are presently 'mapping out the areas of understanding and agreement.' The discussions are taking so long, the official said, because they are tantamount to negotiations, with the US representing the interests of a number of other players - Egypt, Jordan, and the Palestinian Authority.

The official also said he believes the final formula of support for the plan that the Bush administration will issue 'will be satisfactory for the Israeli domestic scene,' meaning that it will live up to the three conditions Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu spelled out for his critical support of the plan.

Netanyahu, whose support is considered key in swaying some of the uncommitted Likud ministers, laid out three conditions for accepting Sharon's disengagement plan at last Sunday's meeting between Sharon and the Likud ministers.

These conditions are:

* All of the points of entry to the Gaza Strip - by land, air, and sea - must remain in Israeli hands. This condition was earlier by the Defense Ministry as well.

* A public and detailed US rejection of the Palestinian demand for the right of refugees to return to Israel. The US's rejection of the 'right of return' was strongly implied in comments by presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.

* Completion of the security fence before withdrawal from Gaza begins, including building the fence around the Ariel, Gush Etzion, and Ma'aleh Adumim settlement blocs, as well as around Route 443 from Modi'in to Jerusalem. This will be the most difficult commitment to secure, since the US has objected to the route of the fence dipping deep into the West Bank. [...]

Sources close to Sharon said the disengagement plan placed Netanyahu in a political dilemma. While he has real problems with the plan, he understands the public sentiment in favor of withdrawal, and he is looking beyond the plan to the next election.

Remarkable how easy it is to solve the Palestinian problem if you just cut them out of the decision-making loop.

Posted by Orrin Judd at March 30, 2004 9:09 AM