The round of talks about talks dripped with smiles and expectations on Tuesday night. Even U.S. President Barack Obama finally emerged from the White House to take part in the festivities. High-level American officials, under instruction from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, radiated great optimism to Middle Eastern media outlets.
The officials praised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and stated that the negotiations' goal is a permanent peace agreement. But when asked directly, the officials said that an interim deal is also a possibility, if that's what the sides prefer. An interim deal is not the plan, but it remains in the back of the diplomats' minds.
Israel's top negotiator Tzipi Livni didn't spoil the atmosphere, but was more controlled. Livni and chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat have already sat for many hours in the negotiating room, without results, but also without embarrassment or despair.
As expected, Kerry said that all final-status issues will be on the table. Everyone understands there will be arm wrestling between the sides over which issues to talk about first and which to push off. The sides have agreed in advance to comprehensive negotiations, but if Kerry and Martin Indyk act wisely, they will determine which issues will cause an immediate collapse of talks and on which issues understandings can be reached.
Explosive issues that could scuttle negotiations in an instant include the division of Jerusalem, the right of return for descendants of Arab refugees and the 1967 borders. On other issues, there may be crises, but they'll be overcome more quickly.
Obama and Kerry on Tuesday reminded Netanyahu and Abbas that they would have to make tough and painful decisions. This is familiar language. Are Netanyahu and Abbas entering negotiations with good intentions? Are they capable of making painful decisions?
On gauging the two sides' attitudes toward the talks, Kerry made a seemingly technical point that in fact had much importance. Kerry said that the Israelis and Palestinians won't brief the media about the progress of negotiations. All announcements will come only from Kerry. As long as the sides are satisfied with the talks, or as long as they fear an angry American reaction, this rule will be abided by. But if leaks, true or false, start coming out, suspicion will arise that the negotiations are about to be cut off. And this could happen, God forbid, before the end of the nine-month negotiating window agreed to ahead of time.
טעינו? נתקן! אם מצאתם טעות בכתבה, נשמח שתשתפו אותנו