I'm surprised we haven't been talking about the apparently historic agreement between Israel and UAE to establish full diplomatic relations. President Trump was quite excited to announce it, and it's clear that Israel and UAE are both keen to establish a strategic relationship in a world in which both are worried more about Iran than each other.
But for the UAE to save face, Israel had to pay some level of lip service to the two-state solution, and shortly after, it appears mere lip-service it was, as the UAE (and the White House) claimed Israel was halting plans to annex parts of the West Bank, while Bibi almost immediately confirmed that his long term plans were the same; annexation was merely on hold.
It's unthinkable that Bibi simply pulled a fast one on everyone involved, and then brazenly owned up to it hours later. It will take weeks to get even the beginnings of this agreement implemented, and then many months and years to gradually get to the point of strategic partnership that both countries crave.
Rather, it seems that in the new Middle East, potential threats from Iran, the Muslim Brotherhood, etc., weigh more on the minds of Arab leaders than the plight of Palestinians. As more and more Arabs come around to the realization that Israel makes a better partner than adversary, it's going to be very easy to trade the Palestinians, since they are a much more valuable bargaining chip to Israel than they are to the Arab states.
But for the UAE to save face, Israel had to pay some level of lip service to the two-state solution, and shortly after, it appears mere lip-service it was, as the UAE (and the White House) claimed Israel was halting plans to annex parts of the West Bank, while Bibi almost immediately confirmed that his long term plans were the same; annexation was merely on hold.
It's unthinkable that Bibi simply pulled a fast one on everyone involved, and then brazenly owned up to it hours later. It will take weeks to get even the beginnings of this agreement implemented, and then many months and years to gradually get to the point of strategic partnership that both countries crave.
Rather, it seems that in the new Middle East, potential threats from Iran, the Muslim Brotherhood, etc., weigh more on the minds of Arab leaders than the plight of Palestinians. As more and more Arabs come around to the realization that Israel makes a better partner than adversary, it's going to be very easy to trade the Palestinians, since they are a much more valuable bargaining chip to Israel than they are to the Arab states.