AN ISRAELI VIEW: The best of a bad lot?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Gilead Sher - May 10, 2010 - 12:00am

The good news first: after more than a year wasted over trial and error in United States foreign policy, President Barack Obama has set the Israeli-Palestinian process back on track. The bad news is that for the first time in close to two decades, Israelis and Palestinians will be talking indirectly to one another.

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U.S.-Brokered Mideast Shuttle Talks Begin Again
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - May 9, 2010 - 12:00am

The Obama administration announced Sunday that indirect, American-brokered talks had resumed between Israel and the Palestinians, capping a year of efforts by Washington to revive the peace process. The American special envoy to the region, George J. Mitchell, is expected to shuttle between the two sides over the next four months as mediator of the so-called proximity talks. They are aimed at forging a joint vision of the outlines of a solution based on the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.

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US: Israel promised not to build in Ramat Shlomo for 2 years
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Yitzhak Benhorin - May 9, 2010 - 12:00am

The State Department said the first round of indirect peace talks between Israel and Palestinian authorities have been completed. State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said in a statement Sunday that US special envoy George Mitchell has left the Middle East after concluding talks characterized as serious and wide-ranging.

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Moment of truth has arrived
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Daoud Kuttab - May 7, 2010 - 12:00am

If ever there was a statement that reflected the true position of Palestinian negotiators and Arab leaders, it was the one made by the Qatari prime minister, Hamad Ben Jasem Al Thani. The statement, made after the Arab follow-up committee gave the PLO the green light to resume indirect negotiations, reflects a pessimistic outlook of peace. "We don’t trust Israel, but we find positive indications on the part of the US mediator," said the Qatari premier, who is also his country's foreign minister.

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Turning the other cheek
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by George S. Hishmeh - May 7, 2010 - 12:00am

By choice or coincidence, US President Barack Obama and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas find themselves this week in the same boat, thanks to the mischief of Benjamin Netanyahu.The two leaders have turned the other cheek helplessly, seemingly adopting the choice offered in the Christian doctrine, which favours a non-violent response to an aggressor. One explanation of this doctrine, among many, is that to turn the other cheek is not humiliating, but rather aresponse of strength that says “I will not seek revenge because I am stronger than that”.

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PNA to test U.S. credibility in proximity talks among criticism from opposition groups
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
by Saud Abu Ramadan, Fares Akram - May 6, 2010 - 12:00am

A senior Palestinian National Authority (PNA) official said on Wednesday that the upcoming few weeks will show the U.S. administration's seriousness and credibility in pushing forward the four-month proximity talks between Israel and the Palestinians. "The coming weeks will be a test for the ability and credibility of the U.S. administration to push forward real and serious negotiations that lead to tangible results and not only negotiations without outcomes," Nabil Abu Rdineh, spokesman of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, told reporters.

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US envoy sees indirect Mideast peace talks in days
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Allyn Fisher-Ilan - May 6, 2010 - 12:00am

The United States expects to reconvene Israeli-Palestinian peace talks in an indirect format in the coming days, a U.S. spokesman said on Wednesday after the U.S. envoy met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "We hope and expect formally to move forward with proximity talks before Senator (George) Mitchell leaves the region on Sunday," State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said in Washington after Mitchell's three hours of talks with Netanyahu.

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Obama advisor: Jerusalem issue at end of talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Yitzhak Benhorin - May 5, 2010 - 12:00am

Just before the start of proximity talks between Israel and the Palestinians, the Obama administration has indicated that the issue of Jerusalem will be discussed at the end of the talks, and not at the beginning. The US interest in Jerusalem stems from construction plans made public during Vice President Joe Biden's visit to the region, just a short time before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was due to meet with US President Barack Obama in the White House.

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Israeli officials: Obama to call world summit if Mideast peace talks fail
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - April 30, 2010 - 12:00am

U.S. President Barack Obama has told several European leaders that if Israeli-Palestinian talks remain stalemated into September or October, he will convene an international summit on achieving Mideast peace, senior Israeli officials told Haaretz on Thursday.

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US gives Abbas private assurances over Israeli settlements
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Rory McCarthy - April 30, 2010 - 12:00am

The US has given private assurances to encourage the Palestinians to join indirect Middle East peace talks, including an offer to consider allowing UN security council condemnation of any significant new Israeli settlement activity, the Guardian has learned.

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