Visiting the Middle East this week, President Bush sounded an unaccustomed note of diplomatic urgency. He insisted that Israel and the Palestinians will conclude a peace agreement before he leaves office in early 2009, and he tried to rhetorically prod the process along.
Rhetoric is, of course, better than nothing — especially after Mr. Bush spent seven years refusing to get involved. The problem is that there really isn’t much time. And while Mr. Bush has to worry about his legacy, the rest of the world has to worry about the even deeper disillusionment and fury that would follow if this too-long-delayed peace effort fails.
It has been six weeks since Mr. Bush hosted the Annapolis peace conference. Six weeks and one presidential visit later, and nothing on the ground has changed.
Despite longstanding pledges, the Israelis are refusing to stop expanding settlements while the Palestinians aren’t doing enough to halt violence against Israel.
We understand that all of the core negotiating issues — borders, security, refugees and Jerusalem — are hugely difficult. But Israelis and Palestinians won’t be willing to think about making compromises until they see tangible improvements in their lives.
For the first time, Mr. Bush did say that Israel must compensate Palestinians who left or were driven from their homes in what is now Israel. He also warned both sides that they are going to have to make difficult compromises on their borders.
Coming from Mr. Bush, that was seen as a full-court press. But he’s going to have to press a lot harder.
The trip did produce one so-called deliverable — from Washington. In time for the president’s arrival, the administration finally named a top official — Air Force Lt. Gen. William M. Fraser III, assistant to the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff — to mediate disputes over the two sides’ compliance with previous agreements.
Officials could not say how the general would do his job, or even whether his judgments would be made public. If there’s any chance of this working, Washington must be willing to hold both sides publicly accountable. The Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert, and the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, are weak leaders who need maximum support and pressure to make and implement the hard decisions required to reach a peace agreement.
Mr. Bush said he would pressure the two sides when necessary, and he also promised to return to the region in May for Israel’s 60th anniversary — and maybe more often if needed. We hope that means that the president is finally and truly engaged.
Mr. Bush plans to spend the rest of his trip visiting several Arab countries. Like the president, many of the leaders he will meet with have also spent years claiming that they want a Palestinian state and peace in the region — while doing very little to make it happen. Mr. Bush should prod those leaders to play against their own type.
They can start by providing more economic and political support for Mr. Abbas. And they must find ways to reach out to Israel, making it clear that a peace deal would bring with it true regional acceptance.
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