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Preparing for peace?

THERE is weight in Palestinian Information Minister Riad Malki’s call for a six-month deadline to wrap up a deal with Israel after the US-sponsored Middle East peace conference likely in November.

Already the conference is receiving a laid-back response, even from principal stakeholders like the Palestinian Authority itself, Saudi Arabia and of late, Syria. And unless America and Israel come round to adopting a concrete way to settling the matter once and for all, the interest is likely to remain elusive.

As pointed out by the minister, much of the ‘ground work’ has already been done, therefore such a timeframe might not be unrealistic. And with Washington itself looking for a Palestinian solution to serve as its legacy, after near complete erosion of credibility owing to its war-on-terror specific antics, it might just find it opportune to do a little arm-twisting when setting the agenda with Tel Aviv.

But Israel still wants the joint declaration to be presented to the conference ‘minute and non-specific’, betraying its usual foot-dragging designs. But with the government in Tel Aviv still rocking from scandal after scandal, especially since last summer’s skirmish with Hezbollah, the time may be right for the West to apply pressure long over due.