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Wednesday, February 1, 2023

Abbas Wanted a Diplomatic Gesture, Blinken Offered a Cellular Network Upgrade - Palestinians - Haaretz

Veteran Egyptian journalist Ahmed Ragab once described three types of diplomatic statements: strong, sensible statements; empty statements and strong but empty statements. The latter ones are nice to hear, amusing and bring a smile to your face, but in practice are hollow and have no real message.

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This is the description that every Palestinian citizen – not just the Palestinian Authority leadership – can count on at the end over every conversation with senior officials in Washington, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Those statements have survived from the days of George W. Bush through Barack Obama until today, save for the Trump era, during which the White House viewed the Palestinians through the lens of the Yesha Council of Jewish settlements.

During Blinken's two-day visit to Israel and the West Bank this week, the Israeli conversation has been focused on the plan by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Justice Minister Yariv Levin to weaken the judicial system, which the U.S. administration can influence to some degree, and, of course, on Iran. Without the attacks in Neve Yaakov and in Silwan, the Palestinian issue would likely not have garnered any attention.

The situation in the West Bank has simmered for over a year. The number of Palestinian victims has risen, and every time the Palestinians raise a ruckus, they are told to keep quiet – no doubt for the sake of diplomacy. It started with former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, then passed on to his successor Yair Lapid, and now Mahmoud Abbas is stuck again with Netanyahu, backed this time by Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.

If, several months ago, there was no readiness to talk about a diplomatic horizon, the door has now been slammed shut. These days, the conversation is about preventing another escalation, to the point that Blinken is prepared to leave members of his staff in the region. We will see Barbara Leaf and Hady Amr coping with Ben-Gvir.

U.S. officials need to understand that the Palestinians, even if they are naïve, are not that stupid. There is no need to declaim that the United States is "committed to working toward our enduring goal of ensuring that the Palestinians and Israelis enjoy equal measures of freedom, security, opportunity, justice, and dignity" when Israel is doing whatever it pleases with no regard for international, namely American, pressure. This is especially true when every Palestinian maneuver on the international stage, including turning to the United Nations and the International Criminal Court, is perceived as a defiant move that undermines trust.

During their conversation, Abbas heard Blinken's opposition to the decision to stop security coordination with Israel and the intention to continue resorting to international organizations. Abbas – hopeless as he is – explained that these moves cannot be halted. Blinken raised the need for confidence-building measures. But instead of offering a strategically and diplomatically effective step, as expected of an official representing a power like the United States, he spoke of economic aid to the PA and civilian relief, including upgrading the cellular network – as if the average Ramallah or Jenin resident's highest expectations are playing on their phones and watching TikTok videos.

Everything else was pushed aside. The 1967 lines are irrelevant; there is not a word about the ongoing settlement construction and the occupation. Even declaring an opening date for the U.S. consulate in East Jerusalem or the PLO office in Washington weren’t on the agenda. Israel will receive visa-free entry into the United States at a discount – permitting Palestinians with U.S. citizenship to enter its territory or to fly from Ben-Gurion International Airport – or without having to pay anything at all.

With such news, it is no wonder that the Palestinian leadership would not speak to the press at the end of the meeting. From the Palestinians’ perspective, there was nothing to report, save for a brief message from Abbas. The ceremony is over, and the visit is over, with no substance – and no hope.

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Abbas Wanted a Diplomatic Gesture, Blinken Offered a Cellular Network Upgrade - Palestinians - Haaretz
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