Ehud Barak's off-white paper By Evelyn Gordon (November 28) - American and European officials were furious last week when Prime Minister Ehud Barak released a "white paper" detailing Yasser Arafat's efforts to undermine the peace process over the last seven years. They sharply criticized its contents and said its publication casts doubt on Barak's own commitment to peace. Yet even while publishing this white paper, Barak and his cabinet continue to declare - and to prove daily by their veto of most of the army's proposed actions - that Israel's goal is not to defeat the Palestinians militarily, but rather to return to the negotiating table and cede the bulk of the West Bank to an independent Palestinian state. Barak has refused to withdraw the offers he made at Camp David, even though this refusal has prevented formation of the unity government he needs to survive politically, and he is even now reportedly working on a new diplomatic initiative. This behavior is extremely perplexing. If Barak still considers Arafat a potential partner, why release a document denouncing the Palestinian leader, angering many world leaders into the bargain? And if he truly believes that Arafat is not a partner - that he is an enemy whose goal remains Israel's destruction - why is he not exerting every effort to convince the world of this, rather than confusing his message by repeatedly declaring the opposite? Barak's handling of the white paper is a classic example of his waffling on this issue. Initially, the document was not even distributed to Israeli missions overseas; Israeli diplomats learned of its existence from the press. In response to the diplomats' complaints, the Foreign Ministry gave them the paper, but without instructing them to make any use of it. Why bother to issue such a document at all if you are not going to use it? Barak's confused message has also had diplomatic consequences. The cabinet, for instance, is reportedly upset that the US is not unequivocally backing Israel. But since Barak continues to insist that his goal is to resume negotiations, he can hardly blame the Americans for doing what he himself has often said is necessary to achieve that goal: trying to remain evenhanded. Furthermore, how can he seriously expect the US to paint Arafat as the villain when Israel is unwilling to do so itself? press for more articles about this subject "white paper" press for more information about the palestinians |
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