Proximity Talks Take Place In A Vacuum--And May As Well Be On Another Planet

As long as Obama continues to pursue proximity talks without taking into account the people who are going to have to live with his manufactured peace, he will only make matters worse.

Recently, a joint poll was conducted by the Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem with the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research in Ramallah, between June 6 and 16, 2010.

Among the results:

55% of the Palestinians will not grant legitimacy to an agreement reached in the proximity talks, while 35% will; 57% are pessimistic about the outcome of these talks, while 23% are optimistic.

...Demilitarized Palestinian State
Among Palestinians 28% support and 70% oppose the establishment of an independent Palestinian state that would have no army, but would have a strong security force and would have a multinational force deployed in it to ensure its security and safety. Israel and Palestine would be committed to end all forms of violence directed against each other. A similar compromise received in August 2009, 24% support, and opposition reached 76%.
This item receives the lowest level of support by Palestinians. Unlike the refugees and Jerusalem components, this issue has not received due attention in public discourse, as it should, since it may become a major stumbling block in the efforts to reach a settlement.
Among Israelis 58% support and 35% oppose this arrangement compared to 56% support and 40% opposition obtained in August 2009.

Think about that for a second. Obama and Abbas are sitting together--since Abbas has already said he considers Obama to be his peace partner--supposedly pursuing a peace agreement that Abbas's own people are opposed to. The lack of the kind of transparency that Obama promised as a candidate guarantees that any decision reached will be unacceptable to the Palestinian Arabs--never mind Israel.

Just one more example of Obama's foreign policy at work.

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