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Jimmy
Carter: America Must Recognize Palestine
By
JIMMY CARTER
NOV.
29, 2016
ATLANTA
— We do not yet know the policy of the next administration toward Israel and
Palestine, but we do know the policy of this administration. It has been
President Obama’s aim to support a negotiated end to the conflict based on two
states, living side by side in peace.
That
prospect is now in grave doubt. I am convinced that the United States can still
shape the future of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict before a change in
presidents, but time is very short. The simple but vital step this
administration must take before its term expires on Jan. 20 is to grant American
diplomatic recognition to the state of Palestine, as 137 countries have already
done, and help it achieve full United Nations
membership.
Back
in 1978, during my administration, Israel’s prime minister, Menachem Begin, and
Egypt’s president, Anwar Sadat, signed the Camp David Accords. That agreement
was based on the United Nations Security Council Resolution 242, which was
passed in the aftermath of the 1967 war. The key words of that resolution were “the
inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and the need to work for
a just and lasting peace in the Middle East in which every state in the area can
live in security,” and the “withdrawal of Israel armed forces from territories
occupied in the recent conflict.”
The
agreement was ratified overwhelmingly by the Parliaments of Egypt and Israel.
And those two foundational concepts have been the basis for the policy of the
United States government and the international community ever since.
This
was why, in 2009, at the beginning of his first administration, Mr. Obama
reaffirmed the crucial elements of the Camp David agreement and Resolution 242
by calling for a complete
freeze on the building of settlements, constructed illegally by Israel on
Palestinian territory. Later, in 2011, the president made clear that “the
borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines,” and added,
“negotiations should result in two states, with permanent Palestinian borders
with Israel, Jordan and Egypt, and permanent Israeli borders with
Palestine.”
Today,
however, 38 years after Camp David, the commitment to peace is in danger of
abrogation. Israel is building more and more settlements, displacing
Palestinians and entrenching its occupation of Palestinian lands. Over 4.5
million Palestinians live in these occupied territories, but are not citizens of
Israel. Most live largely under Israeli military rule, and do not vote in
Israel’s national elections.
Meanwhile,
about 600,000 Israeli settlers in Palestine enjoy the benefits of Israeli
citizenship and laws. This process is hastening a one-state reality that could
destroy Israeli democracy and will result in intensifying international
condemnation of Israel.
The
Carter Center has continued to support a two-state solution by hosting
discussions this month with Israeli and Palestinian representatives, searching
for an avenue toward peace. Based on the positive feedback from those talks, I
am certain that United States recognition of a Palestinian state would make it
easier for other countries that have not recognized Palestine to do so, and
would clear the way for a Security Council resolution on the future of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The
Security Council should pass a resolution laying out the parameters for
resolving the conflict. It should reaffirm the illegality of all Israeli
settlements beyond the 1967 borders, while leaving open the possibility that the
parties could negotiate modifications. Security guarantees for both Israel and
Palestine are imperative, and the resolution must acknowledge the right of both
the states of Israel and Palestine to live in peace and security. Further
measures should include the demilitarization of the Palestinian state, and a
possible peacekeeping force under the auspices of the United Nations.
A
strong Security Council resolution would underscore that the Geneva Conventions
and other human rights protections apply to all parties at all times. It would
also support any agreement reached by the parties regarding Palestinian
refugees.
The
combined weight of United States recognition, United Nations membership and a
Security Council resolution solidly grounded in international law would lay the
foundation for future diplomacy. These steps would bolster moderate Palestinian
leadership, while sending a clear assurance to the Israeli public of the
worldwide recognition of Israel and its security.
This
is the best — now, perhaps, the only — means of countering the one-state reality
that Israel is imposing on itself and the Palestinian people. Recognition of
Palestine and a new Security Council resolution are not radical new measures,
but a natural outgrowth of America’s support for a two-state
solution.
The
primary foreign policy goal of my life has been to help bring peace to Israel
and its neighbors. That September in 1978, I was proud to say to a joint session of
Congress, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of
God.” As Mr. Begin and Mr. Sadat sat in the balcony above us, the members of
Congress stood and applauded the two heroic peacemakers.
I
fear for the spirit of Camp David. We must not squander this chance.
Jimmy
Carter,
the founder of the Carter Center, was the 39th president of the United
States.
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