Sunday 31 October 2010

From Robin Shepherd blog


http://www.robinshepherdonline.com/



October 30th, 2010
Jerusalem Post editor David Horovitz has written an extensive analysis of the prospects of the Palestinian leadership opting for a unilateral declaration of statehood, probably sometime in 2011, as an alternative to working for a negotiated end to the conflict. It is crucial to understand the issue since it could add an entirely new dynamic into the situation, give new momentum to the Palestinian cause, and simultaneously put Israel in a perilous situation.

There are many reasons to be concerned about a move towards a unilateral declaration of statehood, not least because the Palestinians would undoubtedly want to go beyond the demilitarised state being offered by the Israeli government and also because they would then seek to argue that Israel is not merely an “occupying” power but also an “invading” power. This they could use as a justification for renewed “resistance”, for which read terrorism.

Horovitz has produced an excellent analysis and I recommend reading it in full. But since, at nearly 3,000 words, some readers may not have the time to go through it from beginning to end, I offer here a bullet point rendition of what I take to be the most important points, along with some comments of my own. Points taken from Horowitz’s piece (which are my words, not his) are in bold italics while my own comments follow in normal script:

** Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has himself declared a summer 2011 deadline for Palestinian statehood. Stop the press right here: summer 2011 is effectively tomorrow. In other words, the threat should be treated as imminent.


** Last Tuesday, the UN’s Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Robert Serry said to Fayyad: “We are in the home stretch of your agenda to reach [statehood] by August next year, and you have our full support.” The day before, PA President Mahmoud Abbas repeated what is an increasingly common theme from PA officials in threatening a “resort to the United Nations” in the context of a possible unilateral declaration of statehood. In other words, the potential move to a unilateral declaration of statehood with recognition at the UN should not only be treated as imminent, senior UN officials are sounding increasingly positive about such a possible move.



October 29th, 2010
Readers may be interested to see my piece in today’s Jewish Chronicle. From now on I will be writing a twice-monthly column for the paper in their foreign pages.



Robin Shepherd

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Robin Shepherd (born 6 January 1968) is a prominent British-born political commentator and analyst. He is currently Director of International Affairs at the Henry Jackson Society.[1]Formerly a senior fellow at Chatham House, The Royal Institute of International Affairs, in London, he has been associated with a number of leading think tanks in the United States and Europe.[2]

The early focus of his work was post-Communist transition in Eastern Europe and Russia, such as in his first book, Czechoslovakia: The Velvet Revolution and Beyond (Palgrave Macmillan/St. Martins Press, 2000)[3] which dealt with the post-communist reform process. His research and commentary have since branched out into transatlantic relations, European politics and the relationship between the Western world and the State of Israel. He regularly appears in the international print and broadcast media. Before entering the think tank world, he was a foreign correspondent for The Times in Moscow.

It has been suggested that he was forced out of Chatham House because of his pro-Israel views.[4]. His book A State Beyond the Pale: Europe's Problem with Israel was published by Weidenfeld & Nicholson in September 2009.

[edit]Books

  • A State Beyond the Pale: Europe's Problem With Israel (Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 2009)
  • Czechoslovakia: The Velvet Revolution and Beyond, (Palgrave Macmillan/St. Martins Press, 2000)

[edit]References

  1. ^ Shepherd, Robin (2009-11-18). "Another Vast Jewish Conspiracy. British media and society are gripped by lies about a "secret" Israel lobby controlling foreign policy.". Wall Street Journal: Opinion Journal. Retrieved 16 May 2010.
  2. ^ "By invitation". The Economist. 21 September 2007. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
  3. ^ "Czechoslovakia: The Velvet Revolution and Beyond". Central Europe Review. 9 October 2000. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
  4. ^ http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/21472/chatham-house-man-fired-because-pro-israel-book "Chatham House man 'fired' because of pro-Israel book' The Jewish Chronicle, 29 Oct 2009

[edit]External links

Posted by Britannia Radio at 13:13