In the Palestinian Territories, the administration overruled Prime Minister Sharon and many Palestinians and insisted that the January 2006 legislative elections go forward, despite having failed to empower Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The result was a Hamas victory....The first and last points in this catalog are particularly important. The pretextual administration pro-democracy agenda, now largely in tatters, and talk-to-the-hand war on terror policies have fomented extremism and damaged Israel's ability to pursue relations with its Arab neighbors. American meddling in the elections in the Palestinian territories, in particular, is blamed by some Israeli and Palestinian observers for both the timing of the elections, and their outcome. Hamas' Ismael Haniyah decried a $2 million American grant to the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority just days before the election last year, calling it "blatant interference in Palestinian internal affairs." Reported The Washington Post at the time:The administration subcontracted to Saudi Arabia the power to broker a deal for a national unity government between Abbas' Fatah party and Hamas, without insisting on red lines any deal could not cross.
Hamas now has what it most craves -- legitimacy in the eyes of the Arab world, which could serve as a bridge to wider international legitimacy. It gives up nothing in return. The Mecca agreement does not require Hamas to meet the demands of the Quartet (the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations): recognize Israel, renounce violence and accept past agreements. Mecca has undercut the administration's most ambitious involvement in the peace process and its belated effort to bolster Abbas.
Even without Mecca, the administration's renewed interest in Israeli-Palestinian peace is driven by flawed logic: the desire to gain greater cooperation from moderate Arab countries -- Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf States -- in containing Iran's expanding influence.
Those countries have a powerful self-interest in diminishing Iran's influence that requires no inducements. They should be taking risks to support Israeli-Palestinian peace so as to ease regional tensions and isolate Iran. If the Saudis and others mean what they say about wanting a two-state solution, now is the time to begin the process of normalizing relations with Israel.
Meanwhile, authoritative reports say that the administration is telling Israel not to talk to Syria. Syria's overtures may not be sincere, but Israel should be permitted to call its bluff.
A Syrian-Israeli peace process could have significant strategic benefits.
"Every time the United States says it doesn't want Hamas, they boost Hamas," said Mustafa Barghouti, a former presidential candidate who is heading the Independent Palestine candidate list. "Let us do our elections entirely on our own. These interventions run counter to our efforts, and they hurt the Palestinian people. This effort was completely counterproductive."Anti-Americanism and American actions in the Palestinian territories both contributed to the Hamas victory, which then led to international isolation of the territories and this unfolding disaster. The one point that is rarely made in the new discussion of Israeli-American relations is just how much power America holds in this relationship. Right now, America has asked Israel not to talk to Syria, even though it would be in Israel's interests to do so, and Israel is complying so as not to rock the boat and jeopardize other Israeli interests or the relationship with the Bush administration. Biden has it exactly right: a great deal of what's happening right now in our Middle East policy is about shoring up support among undemocratic Sunni Arab states worried about Iranian power, not a genuine peace process or smart long-term policy.
--Garance Franke-Ruta
