Obama’s Jerusalem speech

[update below] [2nd update below] [3rd update below] [4th update below] [5th update below]

I just watched it on YouTube. It was a great speech. And the Israeli university students were equally great. They cheered and wildly applauded throughout, including at numerous points during these passages

First, peace is necessary. I believe that. I believe that peace is the only path to true security. You have the opportunity to be the generation that permanently secures the Zionist dream, or you can face a growing challenge to its future. Given the demographics west of the Jordan River, the only way for Israel to endure and thrive as a Jewish and democratic state is through the realization of an independent and viable Palestine. That is true.

There are other factors involved. Given the frustration in the international community about this conflict, Israel needs to reverse an undertow of isolation. And given the march of technology, the only way to truly protect the Israeli people over the long term is through the absence of war. Because no wall is high enough and no Iron Dome is strong enough or perfect enough to stop every enemy that is intent on doing so from inflicting harm.

And this truth is more pronounced given the changes sweeping the Arab world. I understand that with the uncertainty in the region — people in the streets, changes in leadership, the rise of non-secular parties in politics — it’s tempting to turn inward, because the situation outside of Israel seems so chaotic. But this is precisely the time to respond to the wave of revolution with a resolve and commitment for peace. Because as more governments respond to popular will, the days when Israel could seek peace simply with a handful of autocratic leaders, those days are over. Peace will have to be made among peoples, not just governments.

No one — no single step can change overnight what lies in the hearts and minds of millions. No single step is going to erase years of history and propaganda. But progress with the Palestinians is a powerful way to begin, while sidelining extremists who thrive on conflict and thrive on division. It would make a difference.

So peace is necessary. But peace is also just. Peace is also just. There is no question that Israel has faced Palestinian factions who turned to terror, leaders who missed historic opportunities. That is all true. And that’s why security must be at the center of any agreement. And there is no question that the only path to peace is through negotiations — which is why, despite the criticism we’ve received, the United States will oppose unilateral efforts to bypass negotiations through the United Nations. It has to be done by the parties. But the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, their right to justice, must also be recognized.

Put yourself in their shoes. Look at the world through their eyes. It is not fair that a Palestinian child cannot grow up in a state of their own. Living their entire lives with the presence of a foreign army that controls the movements not just of those young people but their parents, their grandparents, every single day. It’s not just when settler violence against Palestinians goes unpunished. It’s not right to prevent Palestinians from farming their lands; or restricting a student’s ability to move around the West Bank; or displace Palestinian families from their homes Neither occupation nor expulsion is the answer. Just as Israelis built a state in their homeland, Palestinians have a right to be a free people in their own land.

I’m going off script here for a second, but before I came here, I met with a group of young Palestinians from the age of 15 to 22. And talking to them, they weren’t that different from my daughters. They weren’t that different from your daughters or sons. I honestly believe that if any Israeli parent sat down with those kids, they’d say,

I want these kids to succeed; I want them to prosper. I want them to have opportunities just like my kids do. I believe that’s what Israeli parents would want for these kids if they had a chance to listen to them and talk to them. I believe that. (…)

Now, Israel cannot be expected to negotiate with anyone who is dedicated to its destruction. But while I know you have had differences with the Palestinian Authority, I genuinely believe that you do have a true partner in President Abbas and Prime Minister Fayyad. I believe that. And they have a track record to prove it. Over the last few years, they have built institutions and maintained security on the West Bank in ways that few could have imagined just a few years ago. So many Palestinians — including young people — have rejected violence as a means of achieving their aspirations.

There is an opportunity there, there’s a window — which brings me to my third point: Peace is possible. It is possible. (…)

Negotiations will be necessary, but there’s little secret about where they must lead — two states for two peoples. Two states for two peoples. (…)

Israelis must recognize that continued settlement activity is counterproductive to the cause of peace, and that an independent Palestine must be viable with real borders that have to be drawn. (…)

Look to the bridges being built in business and civil society by some of you here today. Look at the young people who’ve not yet learned a reason to mistrust, or those young people who’ve learned to overcome a legacy of mistrust that they inherited from their parents, because they simply recognize that we hold more hopes in common than fears that drive us apart. Your voices must be louder than those who would drown out hope. Your hopes must light the way forward.

Look to a future in which Jews and Muslims and Christians can all live in peace and greater prosperity in this Holy Land. Believe in that. (…)

Again, wild applause at everything Obama said here. I was surprised by these Israeli students. And impressed. I’ve been among those who thought Obama’s I-P trip was a waste of time. On account of this speech and the reception it received, I may revise that view.

UPDATE: Hussein Ibish nails it in an analysis in FP of Obama’s “extraordinary speech,” which he says “was without question the strongest ever made by a senior American politician on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

2nd UPDATE: Yossi Klein Halevi writes in TNR about “Obama’s big Israel breakthrough.” Money quote

Next time the Israeli government announces a settlement expansion, there will likely be widespread opposition, rather than indifference, among the public. Obama has reminded us that, even in the absence of peace, we have a responsibility not to take steps that will make an eventual peace all the more difficult.

I hope he’s right.

3rd UPDATE: David Makovsky of WINEP has an analysis (YouTube) of Obama’s I-P trip. Money quote

Being that [the Israelis] feel more enveloped in the warmer embrace, they were able to hear messages about what’s the compelling case for peace. Obama put the peace issue back on the agenda because it was not considered a major issue until then because people were so despairing of the Palestinian side so I think he has returned this issue to the agenda and has made a compelling and strategic moral case of why the current course is unsustainable for [Israel]…

4th UPDATE: Ian Black in The Guardian writes that “Obama show[ed] emotional and political intelligence with Jerusalem speech,” though he pointed out that

Palestinian and Arab audiences were generally not impressed – not least because the president offered not a single practical proposal to advance the long-stalled peace process

But what could Palestinian and Arab audiences possibly expect here, as every practical proposal to advance the peace process has already been put forth more times than one can count? What more can one say about peace proposals at this point? (I actually have an original proposal, that I will unveil in the near future)

5th UPDATE: Ynet News.com has a wrap up of Arab press reaction to Obama’s trip. The lede

Arab world has slightly different take on US President’s Jerusalem speech, claiming he fawns over Israel and seeks to please Israeli leaders and public.

Zzzzzzzzzzzz. Is this news to the Arab press? Haven’t they figured this out after all these years?