Mideast Peace Talks to Begin in Annapolis

By Chris Mitchell

CBN News Jerusalem Bureau

November 26, 2007

CBNNews.com - JERUSALEM, Israel - Representatives from more than 40 nations are gathering for the U.S.-sponsored international peace talks in Annapolis, Maryland.

The State Department says the meeting is designed to "realize President Bush's vision of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side-by-side in peace and security."

Many believe the president's vision is far from being realized.

Bush meets with Israeli and Palestinian leaders separately today before the main event of the peace talks -- an all-day session Tuesday with Israelis, Palestinians and representatives from Arab states, including Saudi Arabia and Syria.

But in the Middle East, people on all sides have reservations about the summit.

One of the main concerns many Knesset members and Jewish leaders have about the Annapolis meeting is the fate of the city of Jerusalem.

There have been rumors in recent weeks that Jerusalem might be divided as a part of peace plan -- something most Israelis oppose. Natan Sharansky leads a group called "One Jerusalem."

"We think it's very important to bring the feeling of the people about their solidarity with Jerusalem, their determination not to permit to divide Jerusalem, the eternal capital of Israel to bring it to the top of the life of Israel," Sharansky said.

The issue of Jerusalem remains so divisive; it could cause the collapse of Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas also heads to the Annapolis meeting politically weak.

"Mahmoud Abbas is going to the conference very weak. He's going to the conference at a time when the Palestinians are very divided," Khaled Abu Toameh, Palestinian Affairs correspondent for The Jerusalem Post, told CBN News.

"I don't think he can deliver. Mahmoud Abbas doesn't have full control on the ground. Mahmoud Abbas doesn't even have control of his Fatah party. Mahmoud Abbas is being referred to as many Palestinians as the mayor of Ramallah," Toameh said.

In addition to the weakness of the Israeli and Palestinian leaders, historian Michael Oren believes the historical precedent of Middle East conferences does not bode well for Annapolis.

"Keep in mind, in 1991 after the Madrid conference, the deliberations were also broken into bi-lateral and multi-lateral committees, and none of these committees achieved anything. So, it's unclear, given the historical precedent for this, what the administration hopes to achieve through this," Oren told CBN News.

Whatever the Bush Administration hopes to achieve from this meeting, it has only three days to do it. The meeting will end on Wednesday.

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