Word: palestinians
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...easy part was getting elected. Now Israel's new prime minister, Ehud Barak, has to overcome inflated expectations of his peacemaking abilities. Barak, who was sworn in Tuesday, got off to a fast start, issuing a rousing call for a "peace of the brave" with his Palestinian and other Arab neighbors. And in the clearest signal yet that he plans a substantial land-for-peace trade with Syria, Barak offered a peace agreement based on United Nations resolutions recognizing Syrian sovereignty over the disputed Golan Heights. He also repeated his campaign pledge to get Israeli forces out of Lebanon within...
Barak, a former army chief, imagines his legacy as that of a warrior turned statesman who completed the circle of peace around Israel. The incoming PM promises to proceed toward a final agreement with the Palestinians, but aides say the Syrians are his first priority. With the Palestinians, Barak can expect drawn-out negotiations involving issues like the status of Jerusalem and the future of Jewish settlements in the Palestinian territories. By contrast, a Syrian deal could come quickly--possibly within a year. "With the Syrians, it's cleaner," says an aide close to Barak. "The deal...
Ehud Barak should be worried -- not about any domestic threat, but by U.S. and Arab expectations of his peacemaking abilities. So heady is the atmosphere surrounding Barak?s succession to the stonewalling Benjamin Netanyahu that President Clinton even suggested Thursday that Palestinian refugees should be allowed to live wherever they choose. A noble enough sentiment, but one that was nimbly retracted by the State Department, who may be more mindful of the fact that most Palestinian refugees originally fled homes in what is now Israel. But the episode reflects a mounting problem for Barak. "U.S.-Israel relations may face...
Unlike Netanyahu, Barak has said he has no objections to the creation of a Palestinian state. Still, he would impose limitations that are unacceptable to the Palestinians: annexing large chunks of the West Bank containing Jewish settlements; refusing to share Jerusalem. The Palestinians regard him dubiously. Senior officials recall that in the early days of peacemaking, he, unlike a number of other Israeli generals, declined to meet them. Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who has met Barak three times, has complained that he is "just a cold fish...
That coolness is partly a reflection of Barak's unsentimental approach to peace. Rarely has he addressed the Palestinian people directly or acknowledged their rights and aspirations. Says a close aide: "It's not about granting the Palestinians justice but about promoting our own interests." Even for Rabin, the dry, old combatant who could hardly be accused of excessive emotion, the negotiations weren't just about that. While he acted principally out of Israel's interest, Rabin had concluded that the peace process was also a moral imperative. But he was at the end of a long career, confident...