Obama’s Words

We expected nothing, or nearly nothing, of this official visit, and that is exactly what we got. Leaving Israel to visit Jordan today, Barack Obama has left behind him no more than words. No plan. No initiation of new negotiations. No significant shift in the U.S. position. No new ideas on the resolution of a conflict that many consider impossible to resolve, regardless of the efforts invested.

Didn’t Henry Kissinger* once say, “When you can’t solve a problem, manage it?” Of course, one can also choose to be optimistic and believe in the power of speech. At this point, we will have a look at the masterly speech that the U.S. president — this magician of words — delivered to Jerusalem in front of 600 Israeli students.

“Israel is the most powerful country in this region. Israel has the unshakeable support of the most powerful country in the world … But the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and justice must also be recognized. Put yourself in their shoes — look at the world through their eyes,” Obama told the enthusiastic audience.

“First, peace is necessary … Second, peace is just … Which leads to my third point: Peace is possible,” he added. Then, he quoted David Ben-Gurion, founder of the Jewish state: “In Israel, in order to be a realist, you must believe in miracles.” The president believes that these miracles can only come from Israeli and Palestinian youths, noting that only this could push politicians to take risks, the risks inherent in any peace process.

“But this is precisely the time to respond to the wave of revolution with a resolve for peace,” he concluded.

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It is well known that the relationship between Barack Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu is lukewarm. The new government — just formed by the Israeli prime minister — reinforces the nationalist and religious right and is not likely to contribute to changing this situation. On the other side, the Palestinians say they are disappointed that tangible results have not followed Obama’s June 2009 Cairo speech, a symbol for a new openness to the Arab world.

So much for ambiance.

As for context — context includes the rise of Islamist fundamentalism in the region and the destabilization of Syria; the Iranian nuclear threat with the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei once again threatening to “reduce to dust” Tel-Aviv and Haifa just yesterday. Finally, it includes two major and immediate obstacles to any path for peace: Jewish settlements, which have picked up again, and the rupture between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas’s stranglehold on Gaza, which Obama did not visit while meeting Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, West Bank.

However, even if Barack Obama knew how to act on the ambiance — the contacts have, after all, been rather cordial — the context itself remains the same. The management period for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not over.

*Editor’s note: This quote can be attributed more accurately to Robert H. Schuller, American minister and essayist.