Friday, July 11, 2003

Criteria for Any Solution

Untying The Gordian Knot contains a good starting summary of the criteria for any "agreement".

Criteria for Any Solution
The challenge is to find an approach that is both militarily, demographically and culturally sound, given the Arab world’s unremitting hostility toward Israel that will not disappear under any circumstances. I believe that any serious approach must meet the following criteria:
I. Geographic Security. Israel’s eastern border must have minimum-security depth along with topographical height needed to mount an effective defense against external attack. Similarly, Israel’s borders must surround any Palestinian polity, i.e., there can be no contiguity between a Palestinian entity and any other Arab state.
II. Demographic Security. Within Israel’s final borders the number of Palestinian residents (including current Israeli Arab citizens) cannot be at or reach a level where it presents a challenge to Israel’s identity as a Jewish State, now or in the future. Furthermore, geographic security considerations should try to minimize, to the extent possible, the impact on the current residents (both Palestinian and Israeli) on either side of newly created borders.
III. Access to Holy Places. Israeli Jews (and other Jews) must have assured rights and correlative access to Jewish holy places including the Western Wall and Temple Mount, Rachel’s Tomb and the Cave of the Patriarchs. Similar rights should be accorded Muslims and Christians regarding their respective
holy places.
IV. Palestinian Polity. Any geographically contiguous Palestinian polity must be neutral, democratic, and demilitarized.

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