First Matter of Business in Annapolis

By Hugh Hewitt

"The greatest American scholar of Islam, Princeton's Bernard Lewis, wrote in the Wall Street Journal earlier this week that the success of the Annapolis summit really turns on one question and one question alone: Do the Palestinians and the Arab states recognize the right of Israel to exist? If yes, it is a negotiation over borders. If no, there is really nothing to discuss.

Which is why the summit should begin with candid and public discussions of this very issue. Will Syria's representative and the PLA's leaders announce once and for all in candid terms--in both English and Arabic--that they believe now, and will commit their peoples forever, to the right of Israel to exist as Israel exists today, a homeland for the Jewish people. Far too often Arab and Muslim leaders say one thing in English to appease international observers while saying quite the opposite to their own people.

Until we hear an emphatic, unqualified and bilingual yes to the question of Israel's right to exist, this summit--and all summits--will be charades."

I agree with Hugh Hewitt in that there is nothing to negotiate if you don't believe one side has the right to exist. Even though I think the odds are slim anything positive will come out of this - you cannot even hope for a "temporary lull" in violence because Hamas will not allow that to happen and Abbas has no control over them - there is that slim chance this time could be a bit different from the past because of the Middle East's increasing concerns over Iran and Islamic extremism.