Clinton's "Arab Support Tour" Continues: Britain and Egypt Step In

On the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, external yet powerful actors continued giving statements on Tuesday. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was welcomed by Egyptian officials and U.S. Mideast special envoy George Mitchell in Cairo on late Tuesday. On the same day, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband held talks with Jordan's King Abdullah II.

Milliband criticized the construction of settlements in the West Bank and stated that these "illegal" settlements represent an "obstacle" on the path of peace. On the two-state solution, which requires East Jerusalem as the Palestinians' capital, Milliband said:

The current situation is obviously particularly tense in respect to Jerusalem. We view events there with considerable concern, along with our EU and international partners.

Any alternative to a two-state vision as a solution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict would be dark and unwelcome.

King Abdullah called on the international community to pressure Israel to stop its "unilateral actions" in East Jerusalem. However, the tone of Egyptian Foreign Ministry's statement went further, calling on the international community to protect Jerusalem from the "racist steps" being taken by Israel to change the demographics of the city. Indeed, it was reported by Haaretz that a Foreign Ministry spokesman appealed to the United Nations Security Council with the complaint that Israel has been trying to change the demographic in all Palestinian territory.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit stated that the peace talks between the Israelis and Palestinians must foresee a Palestinian state. He said:

We want to have guarantees for the Palestinians ... that ensure them that these negotiations will not be used to waste time or to accomplish Israeli objectives against them.

Regarding Clinton's visit he added:

I have to wait and see the reaction of the American Secretary of State as she arrives in Cairo tonight, because she gave certain explanations last night. We have to get them ourselves and then consider the issue.

So, at the end of the day, all actors are pursuing that famous strategy: balance of power. On one hand, Egypt is accusing Israel on every front on the grounds of its Arab roots, while on the other it calls Clinton's recent statement - which made no clearer point than reiterating the very clichéd statement that both sides should come to the negotiating table - remarkable because it gave "certain explanations."

What about Britain? After abstaining on the endorsement of the Goldstone Report at the UN Human Rights Council and bringing a joint resolution with France to send the report back to Geneva instead of to the UN Security Council, the "negative" image of Britain needs to be revised and ameliorated now.

And those Palestinians and Israelis who are bearing the burden of this deadlock? Who cares?

Israel-Palestine: Britain & France Try to Contain Goldstone Report

Israel-Palestine: Clinton Praises Everyone, but No Progress on Talks
Palestine: Goldstone Report Goes Back to UN General Assembly

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The United Nations General Assembly is scheduled to discuss the Goldstone Report on Wednesday. However, a joint French-British statement, delivered to the members of the Assembly on Monday, is calling for the members to agree on three "red lines" already confirmed by the 27 members of the European Union. The "red lines" are:

- A resolution brought for the approval of the General Assembly will not include operational steps, like taking the matter to the Security Council or the International Court of Justice.

- The resolution would call on Israel and the Palestinians to embark on an independent investigation into the events of Operation Cast Lead, and the allegations of war crimes.

- The handling of the Goldstone report will return to the Human Rights Council, the UN body in Geneva. The parties will have to report to the council on the findings of their investigations in a few months.

Even if Palestinian leaders were inclined to accept these condition, they now face signficant pressure from their own constituents. On the other hand, it is also certain that there will be no sanctions on Israel from the Security Council since Washington, Paris and London had already declared their positions regarding the Goldstone Report. Welcome to the deadlock of politics....