Ambassadors Pickering and Walker: Middle East Conflict Demands Bold U.S. Leadership

Ambassador Thomas R. Pickering Jr. and Ambassador Edward S. Walker Jr. in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

During our combined nearly 60 years working in the Middle East and on American policy in that region we came to understand the "bicycle principle" - if you are not riding forward, you are falling down.

Jordan's King Abdullah starkly put it this way to the Times of London last week: "If we delay our peace negotiations, then there's going to be another conflict between Arabs or Muslims and Israel in the next 12 to 18 months."

President Barack Obama has displayed a welcome and much-needed determination to ride forward and reverse this situation.

On his first full day in office, he placed phone calls to the leaders of Egypt, Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. He invited all of them to the White House this month. Following his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu last week, the president declared: "The United States is going to do everything we can to be constructive, effective partners in this process" to achieve a two-state solution to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict. He will travel to the Middle East next week and deliver his widely anticipated address to the Muslim world in Cairo on June 4, the day after meeting with King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia.

There is broad consensus among our colleagues in American policy-making in support of this active role the president is assuming to help the Israelis and the Palestinians establish a two-state solution. This formula advances America's interests in the Middle East. It is the best achievable means for creating a viable Palestinian state and ensuring Israel's survival as a Jewish state and a democracy. And while some have claimed the two-state formula is dead, no one has presented a workable alternative.

The coming weeks are critical to the success of this vital effort. We urge President Obama to continue to make clear to Middle East leaders that they must do their respective parts toward attaining the following achievable goals:

» An immediate renewal of U.S.-mediated Israeli-Palestinian negotiations toward the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel;

» A freeze on West Bank settlement construction, the dismantling of superfluous checkpoints and illegal settlements, and the cessation of demolitions of Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem;

» The cessation of Palestinian terror attacks on Israelis and of weapons smuggling into Gaza;

» An increase in the number of American-trained Palestinian security forces in the West Bank;

» The immediate reconstruction of Gaza with a focus on civilian needs and the local economy;

» The pursuit of a comprehensive peace between Israel and its neighbors, including Syria, using the Arab Peace Initiative as a basis for negotiations.

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