In-Depth Coverage

Original Commentaries

09/04/08: From Zero-Sum to Win-Win —Mara Rudman, adviser, Middle East Progress; senior fellow, Center for American Progress. Original Commentary for Middle East Bulletin.
09/04/08: How Progress Is Possible —
08/07/08: How to Deal with Jerusalem —Lt. Col. (Res.) Ron Shatzberg, Project Director, Economic Cooperation Foundation. Interview with Middle East Bulletin.

Setting the Record Straight

Two-State Solution Still Best Option

“In practical terms, we can reach two conclusions: First, a final-status agreement, although its details are known, cannot be secured in the foreseeable future. Second, the time has come to think about other solutions. One of them is a return not to the 1967 borders, but rather, to the reality that prevailed in 1967, when Jordan controlled the West Bank.”
—Major General (ret.) Giora Eiland, “The Jordanian Option,” YNet, September 3, 2008

"On both sides of the green line and, indeed, wherever people think about solutions to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict, a lot of old/new thinking is taking place. … Most of these ideas are patently unrealistic. Discussion of them often reflects despair, not pragmatic strategic thinking. … Precisely because there is no such alternative, other options more readily suggest themselves, ranging from temporary conflict management to three states or entities. Nor does failure today mean that tomorrow we cannot try again to arrive at a two-state solution, which remains the best option for all."
—Yossi Alpher, coeditor of the bitterlemons family of internet publications & former director, Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies, Tel Aviv University, "One State Definitely Not an Option," bitterlemons.org, August 18, 2008

Middle East Analysis

How Progress Is Possible —Hiba Husseini, chair, Legal Committee to Final Status Negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis; former vice chairperson of the Palestine Securities Exchange (1998-May 2005). Interview with Middle East Bulletin.
Perils of an Israeli Transition —The New York Times, Editorial
The Arabs Will Look Differently Upon America —Ron Pundak, director general of the Peres Center for Peace and former architects and negotiators of the Oslo Agreement (bitterlemons.org)

Inside Track: Resolving the Western Sahara Saga

Edward M. Gabriel, former U.S. ambassador to Morocco and a consultant to the Moroccan government (The National Interest)

September 24, 2007

On August 12, the second round of negotiations to end one of the world’s least-known and longest lasting conflicts was quietly concluded… These negotiations are the most recent result of efforts to resolve the status of the Western Sahara. The negotiations directly involve the Kingdom of Morocco… and an armed insurgent group known as the Polisario Front, as well as neighboring Algeria and Mauritania, both of which have long ties to this issue. …

Why has Morocco shifted from its traditional position of total integration of the territory to proposing an autonomy initiative that reflects the concept of free association with an independent state? The answer is simple: The world has changed. Morocco firmly believes that any solution to this conflict must reflect the complex realities of the contemporary global context and provide a meaningful way to realize self-determination for the Sahrawi people while respecting Moroccan national sovereignty. …

Morocco realizes that only regional integration through rebuilding and strengthening the Arab Maghreb Union can help to achieve the economic development needed to allow the entire Moroccan population — especially the Sahrawis — to share in the progress and prosperity of a modern Moroccan state. It is in Morocco’s best interest to promote an economically viable Maghreb, without the hindrance of this conflict. Access the full article>>