By Ted Belman
JPOST reports,
Amid protests from the United States and the European Union, the Defense Ministry is reconsidering its approval of a new Jordan Valley community located over the Green Line, The Jerusalem Post learned on Sunday.
Why?
State Department spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos said on Wednesday: “The establishment of a new settlement or the expansion of an existing settlement would violate Israel’s obligations under the road map.”
Gallegos said the US called on Israel “to meet its road map obligations and avoid taking steps that could be viewed as pre-determining the outcome of final-status negotiations.”
The EU issued a similar statement last week, adding that “such unilateral actions are also illegal under international law and threaten to render the two-state solution physically impossible to implement.”
The EU statement also said “this development would also mean the relocation of some of the Gaza settlers in the West Bank, something that the EU said was not acceptable when it gave its support to the Gaza disengagement.”
Let me be clear about these allegations. They are bullshit.
The Arabs are in fundamental breach of the Roadmap and therefore Israel is not bound to its commitments therein. The Quartet have taken the position that the requirements of the Roadmap cannot be satisfied so they intend to bypass them to the Second Phase which has to do with creating a provisional state whatever that is, or a state with provisional borders which is a state like Israel. So if the Quartet and the Arabs are not following the terms of the Roadmap, why should Israel?
Now what does international law have to say about building settlements and taking unilateral steps? Absolutely nothing.
But what about “taking steps that could be viewed as pre-determining the outcome of final-status negotiations”? Why was this proscribed in the first place? This proscription didn’t appear on the Oslo Accords was was inserted in the Roadmap. Its intent was to tie Israel’s hands. Everyone wants to prevent Israel from bettering its position at the expense of the Arabs. They also want prevent Israel from defending itself. The deck is stacked in favour of the Arabs who can take all kinds of unliteral steps such as propaganda and incitement and terror attacks. Do not such steps predetermine the negotiations. Everyone tries to better their position prior to negotiations. This is natural. Only the Israelis are prevented from doing so. So why did Israel agree? Beats me.
Putting facts on the ground is the best way Israel had to put pressure on the Arabs for an early settlement. If Israel is prevented from doing so, there is no reason for the Arabs to settle and every reason to keep the conflict going for ever or at least until Israel capitulaters fully to their demands.
Finally, so what if building thrity houses in the Jordan Valley “threaten[s] to render the two-state solution physically impossible to implement.”? So does terror and propaganda and incitement. One never hears the EU complaining about that. The two state solution is impossible to implement for many reasons, least of which are the thirty houses proposed. Israel has no obligation to creat Palestine.
