There you go. Hezbollah has made it clear it will never accept Israel's right to exist.
How is peace supposed to be achieved?
Just as disturbing is London decision to directly engage in secret talks with Hezbollah angering the Americans in the process.
No kidding.
Given the way Britain is showing no stomach to face its own Muslim extremist population, this is not comforting to say the least.
When people and states act out of a sense of guilt, in Britain's case for 200 years of imperialist rule, they can behave in strange ways. However given the arcane ways of global politics and diplomacy, given Obama's overtly favoring dialogue and diplomacy, England could very well be feeling the ground for the U.S., no?
ReplyDeleteI don't know about the Obama effect. The British have been going this route for some time now. It was happening, for example, under Bush too; mostly under Brown from what I gather. Possibly even under Blair.
ReplyDeleteLots of underhand things went on under Bush and Cheney.
ReplyDeleteI don't see what is wrong about multilateral feeling the ground. And yes, Britain might have this sense of guilt, being mainly responsible for the root of problems in the Middle East area.
ReplyDeletePS
ReplyDeleteBy the way, wine being a good means of oblivion, today is Roman Liberalia, a festival of merriment and wine drinking in honour of Liber Pater ( = Bacchus).
:-)
MoR, I'll drink to that.
ReplyDeleteI'm doing it just now Paul.
ReplyDeleteAnd how are we to hope that Hezbollah would change their mind if we don't talk to them at all?
ReplyDeleteIt's one thing not to agree, another one to cut all lines of communication.
Francois,
ReplyDeleteYou can talk all you want with them nothing will come of it. They have to learn to compromise a little too. For now, they're disinterested in real dialog except for its political propaganda usefulness with the west.
By continuously making inflammatory remarks Hizzy is not helping its own cause. With its ties to Iran it makes things all the more harder.
Diplomacy in the mid-east is wickedly complex and intricate.
I guarantee you, send Taliban Jack there and they'll toy with him and expose how naive we Westerners can be.
We are here in the bargaining realm. We Westerners have to remember that in the Oriental world a deal is only a step towards another deal. The notion of "done deal" does not exist. There is always something else to be obtained. It is true of the Arabs, it is true of the Israelites. If you can not accept a state of permanent negociations, keep clear of the region. Let them deal in their own way and stop supplying arms.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely Paul.
ReplyDeleteI'll ad one thing: My father-in-law is a Canadian-born Lebanese. He has dealt with many of his Arab brethren all his life in business and the church he was President for.
Thoughtful, wise and brilliant and always in search of common ground he feels the word compromise among Arabs is an elusive term.
Thanks and welcome.
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