2023-09-23 15:30:07
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas during the United Nations General Assembly in New York, United States, September 21, 2023. BRENDAN MCDERMID / REUTERS
It is no longer a question of “stab in the back”. Rather than waiting to be presented with a fait accompli and crying betrayal, the Palestinian Authority (PA) is looking for a place in the ongoing Saudi-American negotiations, with a view to a possible normalization of relations. between the kingdom and Israel.
Read also: Article reserved for our subscribers Israel-Saudi Arabia: the tortuous path to normalization
The Ramallah regime claims to have learned the lesson from the historic debacle represented for it by the so-called “Abraham” agreements, by which the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and more ephemerally Sudan, recognized the Jewish State in 2020, without a regard for the Palestinian question, and without consulting the PA.
Encouraged by Egypt and Jordan, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas traveled to Riyadh in April to meet with the kingdom’s strongman, Crown Prince Mohammed Ben Salman (MBS). Contacts continued during the summer, with Palestinian representatives being sent to the Saudi capital at the end of August. “The Emirates had jumped over our heads with their normalization agreement. Today, the Saudis keep us informed. We want to be involved, and have our problem solved,” summarizes Ahmad Al-Deek, political advisor at the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“A huge mistake”
The PA would have a lot to lose if Riyadh and Washington blamed it for a possible failure of the negotiations. Officially, the Saudi line has not changed: the kingdom remains committed to the “Abdallah plan”, named after the former Saudi crown prince – then sovereign – who forged it in 2002. Adopted by the Arab League, this text conditions the normalization of relations with Israel on the creation of a Palestinian state on the territories of 1967, cleared of settlements, with East Jerusalem as its capital. “Netanyahu and the Americans want to ignore the Palestinian question. When the Saudis say it’s not possible, that’s a victory for us,” believes Mr. Al-Deek.
However, in an interview with the American channel Fox News on September 20, the crown prince signaled that he was ready to revise these parameters downwards. MBS certainly emphasized that the « question » Palestinian was important and had to be “resolved”but he did not speak of« Etat » ni de “rights”content to hope that the negotiations succeed “to a result that makes life easier for Palestinians.”
This last sentence reminds Palestinians of “economic peace” that Israel has promised them for a long time, in the absence of a state or equal rights. “The PA’s engagement in anything resembling normalization, in the hope of profiting from it, is a huge mistake, already believes the opponent Mustafa Barghouti. The very goal of normalization is to liquidate the Palestinian question. The AP should not play this game. Best case scenario, they will only get a little money. Their role is to protect the cause. »
You have 52.74% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.
#Palestinian #Authority #strategy