Paris is currently hosting a pointless Mid East peace conference. Pointless because neither Israel nor the Palestinians have sent a delegation.
So why are they even having it? Well apparently the now lame duck French President Francois Hollande who is not seeking reelection decided to host the gathering for more than 70 nations which are represented because… you tell us.
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And for some reason Hollande chose to hold the conference just days before the handover to the new Donald Trump Administration in America set for Friday at 12 noon.
So will the conference lead to Mid East peace? Of course not! But peace is just such a lovely word, isn’t it.
Apparently the French think that whatever they do in Paris this week will influence Donald Trump once he takes office. This leaves just about everyone in the world with just one question for Francois Hollande and the French people: “Did you guys, like, even pay attention to the American elections over the last 18 months?”
So the people behind this Mid East peace conference – about the one thousandth since August 1, 2015 – say that it is intended “to officially restate their commitment to the two-state solution.” They also say that such a solution must be based on the pre-1967 borders.
This leaves Israelis and Israel supporters everywhere with just one question: “Do these people actually know or understand anything at all about Israel and Israelis? Do they even know what Gush Etzion is?” OK, that’s actually two questions, but you get the idea.
French President Hollande told the Mid East peace delegates, “The two-state solution is still the objective of international community for the future. With this conference I wanted to inscribe the two-state solution on the international agenda.”
“Peace will be achieved by Israelis and Palestinians, ” he added, “and nobody else. Only bilateral negotiations can succeed. We do not want to impose any solutions as some argued to dismiss our effort. It can only come after direct negotiations.”
So what did Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have to say about all of this? Well he told his cabinet that this Mid East peace push will have the opposite effect. Netanyahu said, “There are more attempts to destroy any attempt at peace, and one of these attempts will be happening in Paris. It’s a rigged conference, rigged by the Palestinians with French auspices to adopt additional anti-Israel stances. This pushes peace backwards.”
“Its goal is to try and force terms on Israel that conflict with our national needs. Of course it pushes peace further away because it hardens the Palestinian positions and it also pushes them away from direct negotiations without preconditions, ” added Netanyahu.
And in a clear reference to the new Donald Trump Presidency which starts on Friday Netanyahu said, “I must say that this conference is among the last twitches of yesterday’s world. Tomorrow’s world will be different and it is very near.”
What a surprise.
Meanwhile, Israel’s Foreign Ministry sent out a letter to the nations taking part in the Mid East peace conference which read, in part, “The Paris Conference is an idle exercise and an attempt to circumvent the route of direct negotiations between the parties without preconditions. This is a ‘Palestinian conference’ that is meeting the Palestinian desire to avoid direct negotiations and internationalize the conflict, and therefore Israel opposes the conference.”
Rex Tillerson, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of State of the United States, spoke about the whole Mid East peace process during his Senate confirmation hearing last week. On the aftermath of the December 23, 2016 UN Security Council resolution condemning Israel Tillerson stated that for Israel to enter any new negotiations now would be, “akin, in many respects, to negotiating with someone who denies your right to exist.”
“Why would they [The Arabs] ever live up to any agreement if they don’t expect you to be around? Then to force one party to the table through coercion, or however you want to describe it.”
So what will be the result of this Paris Mid East peace conference? Nothing.
Will there be a final resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict in the next four years? No.
Can there be peace as long as Gaza is ruled by the Hamas terrorist organization and half of Lebanon is controlled by the Iranian backed Hezbollah terrorist organization? No.
