• Home
• /
• Opinion

Broker a two-state solution in Mideast

The French move came just days after United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon castigated Israel for adopting delaying tactics, and sabotaging the United States-sponsored peace talks.

There are positive signals as far as efforts to realise a two-state solution is concerned in the Middle East. France took a leap step as it announced that it will recognise a Palestinian state, if a final push to broker peace talks failed. Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius rightly said that letting the status quo continue risks killing off a two-state solution and playing into the hands of extremist elements. His warning should be read in the backdrop of rise of Daesh, and the sympathy they solicit from the masses by citing discrimination against the unresolved territorial issue of Palestine.
The French move came just days after United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon castigated Israel for adopting delaying tactics, and sabotaging the United States-sponsored peace talks. The world body chief said that expansion of illegal settlements in the Occupied territories by Israel is a 'provocative act' that raises questions about its commitment to a two-state solution. So was the stance of Fabius, who said: "We cannot let the two-state solution disintegrate. It is our responsibility as a UN Security Council member and a power seeking peace (in the region)." Paris had earlier called for an international support group comprising Arab states, the European Union and UN Security Council members to force the two sides to compromise.
Many other European countries and Latin American states have already recognised the State of Palestine, and believe that such an acknowledgment is the way to go for building pressure on Israel to follow suit. But the point is that all such diplomatic initiatives will remain half-hearted until and unless Washington prevails over Tel Aviv to trade land for peace. The status quo in the Occupied territories is detrimental to not only regional but also global peace and security.