Israel-Palestine Analysis: Washington's "Fresh" Attempt at Talks Puts Netanyahu on the Spot

On Monday, hours before the arrival of U.S. special envoy George Mitchell in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Washington's new position, taking the condition of another settlement freeze in the West Bank off the table. He said:

To reach peace, we have to discuss the issues that are truly delaying peace ... I welcome the fact that we will now begin discussing these issues and try to narrow gaps.

When Mitchell arrived in Israel, Netanyahu declared:

In their direct talks, both sides decided together to pursue a framework agreement that would establish the fundamental compromises on all permanent status issues and pave the way for a final peace treaty. That remains our goal.

Reaching this goal [face to face negotiations] will not be easy by any means. The differences between the two sides are real and they are persistent. But the way to get there is by engaging, in good faith, with the full complexities of the core issues and by working to narrow the gaps between the two.

But the Prime Minister still faces a challenge. The Obama Administration wants a "fresh" start for indirect talks from both sides. Netanyahu is expected to put forth an offer, especially on borders between Israel and a Palestinian state. The US hopes that a consensus on those borders will bring the solution of other core issues such as security, Jerusalem, water, and settlements. 

On the Palestinian side, West Bank "Prime Minister" Salam Fayyad confessed the bluff of going unilaterally to the United Nations for recognition of "State of Palestine". Fayyad said, "We have already done this in 1988. We are looking for statehood."

Fayyad is right. The recognition of the state of Palestine by dozens of countries will not solve the problem, even if chief negotiator Saeb Erekat has sent an official letter to the European Union's foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, calling for recognition based on pre-1967 borders. Ramallah knows that the only approach is to fulfil all the requirements of a sustainable state. That begins --- along with steps towards the legitimacy of the rule of law, the political system, and economic policy --- with an open dialogue with the Israelis. 

But that of course brings everyone back to the difficulty of resuming direct negotiations, especially with the conservative and cracking Netanyahu government. As the leader of the opposition party Kadima, Tzipi Livni, revealed, Netanyahu has ruled out the possibility that Jerusalem could be divided, contradicting the statement of his Defense Minister Ehud Barak.