Israel agrees to submit borders proposal to Quartet
In a departure from the government’s previous policy, Israel is now agreeing to put forward a comprehensive proposal on borders within the next three months, according to a Quartet communiqué issued Thursday.
The statement, put out following separate meetings the Quartet envoys and Quartet representative Tony Blair held in Jerusalem with Israeli and Palestinian officials on Wednesday, said the parties agreed with the Quartet to “come forward with comprehensive proposals on territory and security within three months.â€
For months and months and months and months the status of negotiations has been stuck on the issue of settlement construction. You’ll still read this in various places.
However, the Quartet has stepped in with a new tactic. Basically, they are asking both side to present what they feel to be acceptable borders for two states. This gives Israel the opportunity to create a defensible mid-line, as opposed to a nine mile strip of land, and the ability to incorporate the new cities, which are now around 40 years old. Those 40 year old cities are often called ‘settlements’.
The PA was expected to submit their own notion of acceptable borders. However, their response was that ‘the time is not right for any kind of negotiation’. In other words, no proposal. Implicit in this called-for proposal would be the relinquishing of PA claims on Israeli land stretching from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea.
And that’s the new sticking point.