Israel Matzav

The end of the 'Palestinian Authority'?

For the umpteenth time, the United Nations representative to the 'peace talks,' Robert Serry, assures us that the sky is falling. According to Serry, if the current talks do not result in a 'Palestinian state,' the 'Palestinian Authority' will collapse.

In remarks broadcast on Israel Radio, Robert Serry said that the urgency of the hour gives him hope that both sides will approach this latest round of negotiations with greater willingness to make progress.

"There is a growing realization on both sides that it is important for them to make meaningful progress and to make these talks not just another round of talks," Serry told Israel Radio.
"I think it is also a time for both sides to make tough decisions," he said. "If there is a willingness to do this, then I believe this goal [of a final status agreement] can be reached within six to nine months."

Nonetheless, Serry warned that yet another collapse of the peace process would cast a heavy pall over the political future of PA President Mahmoud Abbas.

"President Abbas has already been, for a long time, the leader of what is considered to be the more moderate wing of the Palestinian movement which is committed to a two-state solution," Serry told Israel Radio. "Another failure will have consequences for him."

"But the very reason that in my view the consequences for both sides will be pretty serious if this fails again gives me hope that they will be serious in this US-led effort to return to meaningful negotiations."

The 63-year-old Dutch diplomat says that peace is all the more imperative since the current governmental infrastructure that has taken root in the West Bank will no longer have legitimacy if it is not seen as a way station toward a Palestinian state.

"If this state-building remains without a credible political horizon, that cannot just continue endlessly, and that is why the resumption of talks at this point is so important," he said.

"These institutions have been built up. If their ultimate meaning, which is to be the foundation stones of a Palestinian state, becomes a total illusion, then we should not take their continued existence for granted. It should be clear to anyone."

Given that Abu Bluff's elected term in office expired four and a half years ago, how much legitimacy does he have now? How can he possibly make compromises for 'peace'?

Labels: Abu Mazen, Middle East peace process, Middle East quartet, Palestinian Authority, Palestinian state RIGHT NOW syndrome, Robert Serry

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:42 PM