Clinton Seeks to Calm Arabs Over Settlement Dispute
Nov. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Secretary of State Hillary Clintonhas scheduled a meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak inCairo in two days as she tries to temper Arab criticism of herpraise for Israel’s offer to restrict West Bank settlements.
The planned visit was announced as Clinton was inMarrakech, Morocco, today to attend a forum with Arab ministers,where she said the Israeli offer “falls far short” of U.S.calls for a total settlement freeze.
Still, the offer and Palestinian efforts to improve WestBank security are both important steps to resuming peace talks,she said. Clinton assured Arab leaders that praise of Israeldoesn’t mean acceptance of West Bank settlements.
The tension illustrated the difficulties faced by the Obamaadministration as it attempts to bring the Israelis andPalestinians back to the bargaining table.
Clinton two days ago hailed Israeli Prime Minister BenjaminNetanyahu’s proposal to limit settlement expansion as an“unprecedented” move to renew peace talks. Today, she saidsteps taken by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas andPrime Minister Salam Fayyad “are also unprecedented,” andIsrael “should reciprocate.”
Earlier today, Arab League Secretary-General Amre Moussa,who is also in Morocco for the Forum for the Future conference,told reporters that he feared the peace process had beencrippled by her comments in Jerusalem.
‘Deeply Disappointed’
“I still wait until we have our meetings and decide whatwe are going to do,” Moussa said. “But failure is in theatmosphere all over.”
“All of us, including Saudi Arabia, including Egypt, aredeeply disappointed” by Clinton’s words in Jerusalem, he said.She “left the impression that “Israel can get away withanything.”
Clinton, seated alongside Moroccan Foreign Minister TaiebFassi-Fihri an hour later, referred to a prepared statement whenasked by a reporter if her comments had undermined trust in thepeace effort.
“I think it’s important to put this into context,” shesaid. “The Obama administration’s position on settlements isclear, unequivocal, it has not changed,” and the U.S. “doesnot accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements.”
Clinton said her intent was to “offer positivereinforcement to the parties when I believe they are takingsteps that support the objective of reaching a two-statesolution. I will also push them, as I have in public andprivate, to do even more.”
Palestinian Response
Her clarification satisfied Palestinian Foreign MinisterRiad Malki.
“We are happy that such a position was highlighted andbrought back to the right line,” Malki told reporters inMarrakech. “We completely appreciate the sincere efforts madeby President Obama and his team” to make a settlement freeze“a top priority.”
Haim Malka, deputy director of the Middle East program atthe Center for Strategic and International Studies inWashington, said Clinton “is trying to put a positive spin onthe positions of both sides with the hope that directnegotiations can still be cobbled together.”
“That’s a tough sell,” Malka said.
“The gaps between both sides are so far apart right nowthat those negotiations are not going to get very far” even ifthey were to start, he said in a telephone interview today.
‘Restraint’
Israel is obliged to freeze all Jewish settlements inoccupied territories under a framework for peace brokered by theBush administration. Last May, Clinton said only a completeconstruction halt would be acceptable to President Barack Obama.Last month, Obama referred only to “restraint” in settlementactivity, not a “freeze.”
Netanyahu said Sept. 17 that about 2,400 new homes arealready under construction in the West Bank and plans foranother 500 or so have been approved.
The U.S. understanding of Netanyahu’s proposal to restrainfurther settlements is that the homes already under constructioncould be completed, while others that are approved or in theplanning stages would not be started, a senior State Departmentofficial told Bloomberg today. The prime minister has alsopromised not to take over any more Palestinian land in the WestBank to expand settlements.
Clinton today said Netanyahu’s plan “falls far short ofwhat we would characterize as our position or what ourpreference would be, but if it is acted upon, it will be anunprecedented restriction on settlements and would have asignificant and meaningful effect on restraining their growth.”
Israeli-Palestinian negotiations broke down in Decemberwhen Israel launched a military operation in the Gaza Strip. TheObama administration’s high-profile efforts thus far have failedto bring the two sides together again.
To contact the reporters on this story:Indira Lakshmanan in Marrakech, Morocco at ilakshmanan@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: November 2, 2009 15:59 ESTSource: Bloomberg
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