Hope in Obama’s trip

Editorial

Barack Obama has scheduled his first trip to Israel as U.S. president, a visit many have complained is years overdue. In addition to meeting with Israel’s Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, with whom he has a famously cool relationship, Obama is expected to visit Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank.

Some commentators, including Israel’s departing Deputy Foreign Minister Daniel Ayalon, suggested that perhaps a “mini-summit” between the American, Israeli and Palestinian leaders might be in the offing. Such a meeting would be at least symbolically valuable, though body-language experts would have a field day parsing that particular triangle. A trilateral feel-good handshake get-together, if it achieves absolutely nothing else, would be a positive step where too few have been seen recently.

This week, Netanyahu acknowledged that he and Obama will target three main topics: Iranian nukes, the violence in Syria and the potential for renewed negotiations with the Palestinians. Whether any solid results will emerge from the meetings is unknowable. But both men may be acknowledging the fact that, given elections in their respective countries, they are obligated to work together. Whatever animosities may exist personally,

Netanyahu and Obama’s interests are almost completely in synch on the first two items. Despite whatever protestations his critics raise, Obama and new Secretary of State John Kerry are unequivocal in their promise to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. On Syria, the future is as uncertain as the present is brutal and some resolution that brings both peace and stability is as desirable for the United States as it is for Israel.

On the last niggling issue, Israel and the Palestinians, we may actually be witnessing a first thaw in the recent ice age between the two parties. Israel’s election results placed unexpected pressure on Netanyahu to begin making greater efforts at returning to a process leading to a resolution. It is highly unlikely that a permanent fix will be found in Obama’s next four years, but his visit may well be a catalyst that ends a period of status quo and launches a fresh effort at co-existence. If this is all Obama’s visit does, it will be a positive step. With good will on all sides, it may do even more.

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