Managing Transit and Trade across the Israeli/Palestinian Borders: Technical Negotiations

World Bank and Quartet Special Envoy’s Office - October 30, 2005 - Back to Resources Page [1]

Secure and efficient Palestinian trade is essential to both the PA and Israel. The World
Bank/Quartet Special Envoy Office Team (the Team) is convinced that sound approaches
exist that will protect the legitimate interests of the two parties. Israel’s commitment to
more efficient Palestinian trade is manifest in its ambitious and costly program of border
terminal reconstruction. If this program is accompanied by terminal management system
reform, the Palestinian economy stands to benefit significantly. New infrastructure and
equipment alone, however, will not guarantee this result.

Intense and sometimes fruitful negotiations were held between August 4th and September
5th, at which point they ceased. This delay is hard to understand, and has been costly. If
satisfactory technical solutions are to be agreed and implemented with the necessary
speed, greater flexibility is now needed from both parties than has been shown up to now
in these negotiations.

In order to bring the negotiations to a rapid conclusion, the Quartet Special Envoy (QSE)
has asked the Team to propose answers to the more controversial remaining issues. He is
in agreement with the contents of this note. The QSE and the Team believe that these and
other less controversial issues can be wrapped up in 2-3 days of intense discussion,
providing there is a will to coalesce around sensible solutions.

The situation at the Gaza passages has deteriorated dramatically since Disengagement.
Erez was processing c. 6,500 workers per day in the months prior to September; that
number has fallen to some 100. Karni was processing an average of 35 export trucks per
day; after Disengagement, the daily average has dropped to around a dozen.

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World Bank and Quartet Special Envoy’s Office - October 30, 2005 - Back to Resources Page [1]