(Originally posted at: Hoot at the Dark.)
The joint statement by the United States, European Union, Russian Federation, and the United Nations (the Quartet) on the Palestinian elections is a strong repudiation of the initial US position.
From the Quartet Statement:
Mindful of the needs of the Palestinian people, the Quartet discussed the issue of assistance to the Palestinian Authority. First, the Quartet expressed its concern over the fiscal situation of the Palestinian Authority and urged measures to facilitate the work of the caretaker government to stabilize public finances, taking into consideration established fiscal accountability and reform benchmarks.
Second, the Quartet concluded that it was inevitable that future assistance to any new government would be reviewed by donors against that government’s commitment to the principles of nonviolence, recognition of Israel, and acceptance of previous agreements and obligations, including the Roadmap.
After Hamas’ suprise victory, Condi shrilly demanded immediate and explicit renunciation of violence as a non-negotiable condition for any aid to the Palestinians. Now, under the exceedingly weak language of the Agreement, the can is kicked down the road, simply to be ‘reviewed’ with the other supposed non-negotiables like recognition of Israel and acceptance of the roadmap (events that can logically occur only AFTER the Palestinians first stop bombing Israelis).
While another in a long series of black eyes for the oxymoronic ‘Bush diplomatic corps’, the Quartet’s statement does reflect a much more realistic approach than the Administration’s initial, kneejerk reaction of threatening to starve the newly (and fairly) elected government out of existence. As we saw with Sinn Fein in Northern Ireland, it takes time for a previously outlawed party to stabilize itself after winning a seat at the table. But once they get their feet underneath them, the new leadership is a far more likely to stop the violence because now they have something to lose if they don’t. Any attempt to destabilize Hamas right out of the box would only prevent the consolidation of authority necessary for effective control, and thus prolong the suffering on both sides – as the French so tragically learned in Algeria.
On a larger scale, what is also painfully apparent from the Quartet’s statement is just how much international influence the US has lost on this issue. The Israeli/Palestinian conflict was once the almost exclusive province of American diplomats. Now we are meeting jointly as simply one of four powers, where our clumsy, strident policies are either watered down or politely (but firmly) booted. The same phenomenon is happening with North Korea, where the US is actually insisting on a multi-lateral approach – actively ceding its own authority to other nations and drastically diminishing its own position in the bargain.
Given the uber-dangerous incompetence of the current Administration, the reduction of US foreign policy prestige is perhaps helpful to international political stability in the short run. However, if and when this Administration finally slinks off the stage, the next American President will inherit a far less prominent position in a far more dangerous World.
W stands for Weakness.
