Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (State Department)
Who would want Hillary Clinton's job? Broker a Middle East peace accord? Not me.
Since the Sadat-Begin Agreement of 1977, the Israelis and Palestinians, like a commitment-shy bride and groom, talk of a peaceful, happy life together but cannot seem to make it to the altar. But to her credit, like a good matchmaker, Secretary of State Clinton keeps working to bring the parties together even if they seem to have lost the desire for peace. Her predecessor, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice didn't seem to have the stomach for it.
Just in November 2009, Secretary Clinton and her envoy Senator George Mitchell have had to contend with the following.
- A bland meeting between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that produced no substantive results.
- The only Palestinian official whom the Israelis will deal with, Mahmoud Abbas, announces he is quitting as President of the Palestinian Authority.
- Hamas being accused of preventing Palestinian elections in Gaza.
- A rebuke of Clinton for giving the Israelis credit for limiting the construction of new settlements in the West Bank, and subsequently pressure to state that the Israelis should cease building all settlements.
- Palestinians refusal to negotiate with the Israelis until they agree to stop building settlements.
- Israeli Government refusal to assist the UN with its ongoing probe of the Israeli incursion in Gaza in late 2008 and to recognize the findings of the Goldstone Report on the Gaza conflict.
- The Israeli military intercepted a ship carrying cargo believed to be Iranian weapons being shipped to Syria for later transport to Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Combine all this with Hamas' refusal to recognize Israel, Netanyahu's lack of enthusiasm for a two-state solution, lack of consensus on the status of Jerusalem, and the thousands of years of animosity and you have a no-win situation. Despite the United States' earnest intentions, real Mideast peace still seems distant.
If Secretary Clinton manages to get an agreement within the next 3 years, then she definitely deserves the Nobel Peace Prize.
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