Palestine Snap Analysis: As Latin Americans Give Recognition, Where Are Washington's "Vital Security Interests"?

On Monday, Argentine and Uruguay followed Brazil's recognition of the state of Palestine based on 1967 borders.  Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman read the letter sent by President Cristina Kirchner wrote to Palestinian Authority leader Mahmud Abbas: "The Argentine government recognizes Palestine as a free and independent state within the borders defined in 1967." 

Uruguayan deputy foreign minister Roberto Conde said, "Uruguay will surely follow the same path as Argentina in 2011. We are working towards opening a diplomatic representation in Palestine, most likely in Ramallah."

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Palestine Analysis: Can US Make the Most of Moves by Abbas and Hamas?

On Saturday, the leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by phone. Abbas expressed his condolences over the deadly fire in Israel, and Netanyahu expressed his thanks for the help of Palestinian civil defence members. 

Beyond that conciliatory conversation, there were significant political manoeuvres.

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Turkey, WikiLeaks, and Fire-Fighting: Ankara's Challenge to Israel

So why give fire-fighting assistance to Israel while claiming West Jerusalem is behind the WikiLeaks releases to tarnish Turkey? Erdogan's government wanted to boost its credibility in the eyes of the Turkish public, where there are critical views of the "anti-Israeli" standing of the ruling party. Secondly, Erdogan was trying to get an IOU of gratitude. Finally, Ankara found a way to reiterate its demands, boosting its autonomy in the region while Israel becomes bogged down.

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Wikileaks: Today's Guide to EA's Coverage

Analysis

Aluf Benn says "The Fiasco Doesn't Embarrass Israel One Bit".

Features and Documents

1. US officials have "No Confidence in Pakistani Leader Zardari, No Alternative to Afghan Leader Karzai".

2. A year before the 2008 Russian-Georgian war, the US Embassy in Tbilisi documents "The Russian Campaign Against Georgia".

3. In 2009, the US Embassy in Rome intervenes in Italian politics: "Pushing Back Against Silvio Berlusconi, 'The Mouthpiece of Vladimir Putin'."

Wikileaks Commentary: "Fiasco Doesn't Embarrass Israel One Bit" (Benn)

WikiLeaks did not succeed in penetrating the most sensitive channels of U.S.-Israel relations.

Even after yesterday's revelations, we still do not know what was really said in the meetings between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama, or between former prime ministers Ehud Olmert and Ariel Sharon during their talks with former U.S. President George W. Bush, or between Dagan and his counterparts at U.S. intelligence agencies.

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Israel Analysis: Defying Obama, Defying Netanyahu --- The Latest on Settlement Expansion

Israel's envoy to the UN, Meron Reuben, told Palestianian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas on Monday, "It takes two to tango, Israel cannot reach peace on its own." That statement can be taken a step further: within Israel, Netanyahu "cannot reach peace" on his own. Facing the resistance both at local level and within the Cabinet, he is dancing with himself.

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Wikileaks-Iran Analysis: Assessing Engagement and War (Sick)

According to the record, the Obama administration was briefing allies almost from the start — and before Iran had even had a chance to respond to offers of engagement — that we expected this initiative to fail and that we were actively preparing the pressure track that would immediately follow.

Iran could hardly have been unaware of all this, so the chance that they would respond favorably — even before the contested election in June 2009 and the brutal crackdown that followed — was essentially zero. The only conclusion I can draw from this is that Obama was never sincere about his engagement strategy. It has yet to be tried.

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WikiLeaks' Early Christmas Present: Secrets of Israeli-American Relations?

This weekend, the website WikiLeaks is expected to release hundreds of thousands of classified American diplomatic cables sent to Washington from US embassies throughout the world.

On Friday, the US Embassy in Tel Aviv approaches the Israeli Foreign Ministry because, according to sources, some of the diplomatic cables might deal with Israeli-American relations.

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Lebanon Special: Justice or A Death Blow for Beirut? (Narwani)

This Tribunal is no longer about justice. To weigh one man's death against the lives of four million Lebanese and countless other millions who could be caught up in a regional conflagration is sheer madness.

Imagine the trauma of this Levantine nation as the trial draws out, day after day, week after week, month after month - creating divisions, frictions, suspicions to the detriment of Lebanon's fledgling government which has made admirable strides in maintaining its equilibrium and learning the art of compromise this past year.

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Israel-Palestine Analysis: Is Knesset Playing a Peace-Deal Trick on Israeli Public?

The opinions of Israel's people will be sought only if the Knesset has approved an agreement signed by the government; those opinions will have no value if the Knesset has rejected a proposal. Haaretz's Akiva Eldar concludes that "the referendum bill uses public as peace-deal rubber stamp".

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