Enemies of Israel May Decide It's Fate

Four enemies of Israel; Carter, Baker, Scowcroft and Brzezinski give their ideas on how Israel should be carved up and will present their DVD to members of Congress, the White House and State Department.

Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

Comment by Ted Belman
While I agree that US “mediation”, otherwise known as imposing its will, is needed to reach an agreement, I object to the notion that the Arabs should receive 100% of the territories. I also object to the notion that the US must weign in on the Palestinian side because they are weaker. And finally I object to the notion that Israel can’t refuse to create another Arab state.

For a process (Roadmap) that prohited anyone, meaning Israel, from doing anything that pre-judged the outcome, the US has done everything to pre-judge it. Israel was always assured that all final issues would be left to negotiations, the actions of the US totally deny her the right.

Former U.S. Statesmen Say U.S. Role Critical to Securing Middle East Peace
By Mohamed Elshinnawi, VOA

The meeting between President Barak Obama and Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak this week (Tuesday) was the latest in a series of meetings aimed at exploring new avenues for peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors, especially the Palestinians. It comes amid a chorus of proposals from independent groups suggesting ways the U.S. can help resolve the bloody, decades-old conflict. Recently, four prominent American statesmen, including former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, joined that chorus. They present their recommendations in a privately-produced 20-minute film titled New Hope for Peace: What America Must Do to End the Israel-Palestine Conflict.

Voices of experience in Middle East politics

In addition to President Carter, the four men in the film are former Secretary of State James Baker, and two former national security advisors, General Brent Scowcroft and Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski. They are among the most well-known and experienced proponents of the idea that a U.S.-brokered peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians is key to a wider peace among Israel and its Arab neighbors.

The film was produced by the Foundation for Middle East Peace, a private Washington-based group. Retired U.S. Ambassador Philip Wilcox is the Foundation’s president and a 30-year veteran of U.S. diplomatic efforts in the Middle East. He says without intervention and mediation by a third party, “there will be no peace and that is the role that these four statesmen recommend for the President of the U.S.”

Wilcox says negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians are difficult, because “there is no balance between the negotiating powers; one is vastly more powerful than the other.” He notes that both Israel and Palestine “are dysfunctional when it comes to dealing with security, territorial and peace issues.”