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From Conflict Management to Conflict Resolution

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  • From Conflict Management to Conflict Resolution

    From Conflict Management to Conflict Resolution

    Foreign Affairs
    November/December 2006

    By Edward P. Djerejian

    Article preview: first 500 of 2,189 words total.

    Summary: The war in Lebanon presented a fundamental challenge for
    U.S. policy in the Middle East, but also an opportunity -- if
    Washington can transform the fragile cease-fire into a lasting and
    comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace settlement.

    SPARKS AND ROOTS

    The recent fighting in the Levant presents a fundamental challenge for
    U.S. policy toward the Middle East -- but also an opportunity to move
    from conflict management to conflict resolution. The United States
    should seize this moment to transform the cease-fire in the
    Hezbollah-Israeli conflict into a step toward a comprehensive
    Arab-Israeli peace settlement. Doing so would facilitate the
    marginalization of the forces of Islamic radicalism and enhance the
    prospects for regional security and political, economic, and social
    progress.

    The Hezbollah-Israeli confrontation has further proved what should
    already have been painfully clear to all: there is no viable military
    solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict. Even with its military
    superiority, Israel cannot achieve security by force alone or by
    unilateral withdrawal from occupied territories. Nor can Hezbollah,
    Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and similar groups destroy Israel.
    Peace can come only from negotiated agreements that bind both sides.

    Hezbollah may have ignited the spark that set off this latest
    confrontation, but it is not the root cause. The fighting was the
    combined result of the unresolved Arab-Israeli conflict and the
    struggle between the forces of moderation and those of extremism
    within the Muslim world -- two issues that are linked by the radicals'
    exploitation of the Arab-Israeli conflict for their own political
    ends. U.S. policy in the region should thus focus both on trying to
    promote a peaceful settlement of the Arab-Israeli dispute and on
    helping Muslim moderates by facilitating political and economic reform
    across the Middle East.

    THE NORTHERN FRONT

    The crisis on the Israeli-Lebanese border this summer erupted in an
    already tense environment. On June 25, Hamas kidnapped an Israeli
    soldier, which reignited fighting on the Israeli-Palestinian
    front. When Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers on July 12, it
    precipitated a strong Israeli military reaction, which, by his own
    admission, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had not anticipated.

    The Hezbollah-Israeli war lasted 34 days, with major Israeli
    incursions into Lebanon and the firing of some 4,000 Hezbollah
    rockets. The fighting resulted in major casualties (approximately 855
    Lebanese and 159 Israelis killed), as well as large displacements of
    people on both sides of the border. Lebanon sustained economic and
    infrastructure damage estimated at $3.9 billion, and the toll on
    Israel has been figured as running into the hundreds of millions.

    When the hostilities began, the international community called for an
    immediate cease-fire, but the Bush administration held off, calling
    for a "sustainable" cease-fire instead. The Bush administration left
    the strong impression that it was giving Israeli Prime Minister Ehud
    Olmert's government time to inflict serious damage on Hezbollah's
    infrastructure and personnel. Meanwhile, the administration and Israel
    clearly identified Iran and Syria as the main state supporters of
    Hezbollah's actions, and the danger of a wider regional conflict was
    not dismissed.

    Eventually, the international community stepped in to stabilize
    southern Lebanon and prevent the crisis from escalating further. The
    parameters for international action had been set by UN Security
    Council Resolution 1559, passed in 2004, which called for the
    withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon and the disarmament of ...
    [rest of article not available]


    Edward P. Djerejian is the founding director of the James A. Baker III
    Institute for Public Policy at Rice University. He has served as
    U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, Ambassador
    to Syria, and Ambassador to Israel.

    http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20061101fae ssay85605/edward-p-djerejian/from-conflict-managem ent-to-conflict-resolution.html

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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