EU foreign policy chief upsets Israel with Palestinian comments

by David Harris

JERUSALEM, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Israel is unhappy with the remarks made by the European Union's top foreign policy diplomat Javier Solana. During a speech in London over the weekend, the EU high representative called on the United Nations to recognize a Palestinian state by a deadline to be determined, even if the two parties have failed to reach an agreement.

"The mediator has to set the timetable, too. If the parties are not able to stick to it, then a solution backed by the international community should be put on the table. After a fixed deadline, a UN Security Council resolution should proclaim the adoption of the two- state solution," Solana said when giving the Ditchley Foundation lecture.

"It would accept the Palestinian state as a full member of the UN, and set a calendar for implementation. It would mandate the resolution of other remaining territorial disputes and legitimize the end of claims," he added.

Solana's comments are the latest in a series by senior figures in the international community that suggest a growing frustration with the Israeli and Palestinian inability to enter meaningful peace talks.

Despite the more hands-on approach of the Obama administration, compared to that of former United States President George W. Bush, negotiators from the two parties have yet to meet face to face for serious talks, publicly at least.

There is still anger in Palestinian circles following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's June 14 address in which he called for a resumption of talks.

The Palestinians believe Netanyahu was setting preconditions in the speech: that a future Palestinian state should be demilitarized and that the Palestinians recognize Israel as the Jewish homeland. While Netanyahu's advisers insist those terms were not preconditions but rather issues that would be discussed once talks began.

Either way, the pregnant pause in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations is leading some thinkers and diplomats to come up with new ideas aimed at bringing about the creation of a Palestinian state.

Solana's suggestion centers on the idea of imposing a solution on the Israelis and Palestinians. That flies in the face of the Oslo Accords, which, back in 1993, were the basis of the creation of the Palestinian Authority and new theoretical harmony between the parties.

The accords make clear that disputes be resolved "by negotiations." Should that approach fail, disputes "may be resolved by a mechanism of conciliation to be agreed upon by the parties."

Resorting to coercion is not a helpful tactic, said Uri Savir, seen as one of the architects of the Oslo Accords. He argues the accords can no longer be used as any form of reference point for the current situation, given their life-span was just five years, what was thought of then as plenty of time to reach a final-status agreement.

In Savir's opinion, forcing the parties is not necessary at this time.

"I think the two sides are very close to sitting and there will be negotiations," Savir said, adding that timetables should only be discussed once the parties are already talking.