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Palestinian Trends and the U.S. Peace Initiative
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19924 |
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Section : |
MODERN THOUGHT
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| Issue
Date : |
4 / 1992 |
6,022 Words |
| Author
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Philip Mattar
Philip Mattar is executive director of the Institute for
Palestine Studies in Washington, D.C. He is the author of The
Mufti of Jerusalem, rev. ed. (Columbia University Press,
1992). The views express in this article are the author's and
not necessarily those of the institute. |
The United States has an unprecedented opportunity to broker peace and help establish a new regional order in the Middle East. Three extraordinary events--the intifada (uprising) in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, the end of the cold war, and the Gulf War--have made the Arab-Israeli conflict and other regional problems ripe for solutions consistent with American interests and policies.
The core of the Arab-Israeli dispute is the century-old Palestine problem. During British rule (1917-1948), the non resolution of the Palestine problem resulted in six violent clashes between Arabs and Jews, costing thousands of lives and producing Arab and Muslim hostility toward the West for its support of Jewish national goals in Palestine. Since 1948, it has produced five Arab-Israeli wars, which have consumed tens of thousands of lives. The civil war in Jordan in 1970-71 derives from the Palestine problem. The civil war in Lebanon would not have reached its intensity without the Palestinian component. The greatest threat to Western access to Gulf oil in 1973 was largely due to Arab exasperation with American polity regarding the Palestine problem. And some analysts believe that without the Palestine card Saddam Hussein would not have invaded Kuwait nor received as much support in the region.
Most experts and diplomats agree that the Arab-Israeli dispute can never be truly resolved without the resolution of the Palestine problem, which lies at the core of the larger conflict. Thus, the nonresolution of the Palestine problem will block resolution of the Arab-Israeli dispute and regional cooperation on vital issues such as arms control, nuclear proliferation, and water. The eagerness of most regimes to reach an accommodation should not mask the deep resonance that the Palestine problem still holds among the masses. The bitterness and frustration arising from the conflict will help radicals, especially Islamic fundamentalists and leftists, destabilize the region and jeopardize moderate pro-Western regimes and the newly reached U.S.-Arab alliances. Furthermore, it may lead to yet another war in which chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons are used, with catastrophic consequence.
So, despite the absence of Soviet competition, the conflict threatens regional stability and American interests. This largely explains the enormous among of time, energy, and prestige expanded by America's highest officials on the conflict. The early phases of the peace conference in Madrid and Washington, D.C., in late 1991 and early 1992, which produced face-to-face negotiations, helped break some of the psychological barriers to a peaceful
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