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Foreign Affairs Minister Shimon Peres looks on as Secretary of State Colin Powell answers a reporter's question yesterday in Washington. (AP)
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| By Ellis Shuman May 3, 2001 |
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Following a meeting yesterday in Washington with Foreign Affairs Minister Shimon Peres, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell stressed "America's commitment to do everything it can to solve the problems that we see there and to do everything we can to help bring down the level of violence."
Powell promised that President George W. Bush, with whom Peres will meet today at the White House, "will be engaged and is engaged and continues to be engaged on a regular basis, as I will be.''
As analysts in the media were quick to point out, Powell's
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Both sides "need to start going down the escalator of violence"
- U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell
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comments differed greatly from statements he made in March, when he said, "The United States stands ready to assist, not insist. Again, only the parties themselves can determine the pace and scope and content of any negotiations."
According to Associated Press diplomatic writer Barry Schweid, Powell's statement "apparently was designed to dispel any suggestion the Bush administration was taking a hands-off approach to the Arab-Israeli conflict - or that if it had while violence flared, it would no longer stand apart from peacemaking efforts."
The increased U.S. involvement is marked by its support of the joint Jordanian-Egyptian proposal that Powell defined as "the beginning of a dialogue." Powell stated the "dialogue cannot really get under way until violence is brought down, brought significantly down,'' in apparent support for Israel's position of "no negotiations under fire."
Dragged back into the fight
As part of its efforts to reduce the level of violence, the United States has facilitated the recent security talks between Israeli and Palestinian military officials, which have been held at the American ambassador's residence in Herzliya, with a representative of the CIA reportedly in attendance.
According to Deputy Director of the CIA, John McLaughlin, the CIA's role was not to negotiate or mediate; it was to provide a venue for the meetings, "hosted by someone who did not have an axe to grind." Earlier in the year the Bush administration had announced it was suspending the CIA's role in these talks.
In a report filed for United Press International, Eli J. Lake wrote, "Observers note that U.S. policy towards Israel, as articulated by Powell, is beginning to resemble the U.S. approach during the Clinton administration." Lake raised the possibility that Powell and President Bush would get personally involved in mediation efforts.
Except for the declarations of U.S. support for the peace efforts, Powell provided little evidence of a more active Bush administration policy. A clue to this role was offered by Shimon Peres, who apologized for not letting Powell sleep at night. "We call him day and night to let him know what's going on in our region,'' Peres said.
One possible reason for the Bush administration's change in position was raised by Ben Barber in a column posted on the Salon.com website on April 19. "A much-feared third scenario has begun to take shape -- an expansion of the conflict into Lebanon and Syria, accompanied by Israeli re-occupation of Palestinian lands," Barber wrote. As Secretary of State Powell said in a statement at the time, "The situation is threatening to escalate further, posing the risk of a broader conflict."
Barber concludes, "the Bush administration's options are few and grim: Its immediate goal is to simply contain the violence." As Barber pointed out in his column, the United States has been "dragged back into the fight."
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