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The Settlement Issue Has Been Managed without Crisis for Decades
by Elliott Abrams
 The United States and Israel have long had different views of the
settlements, but the issue has been managed without a crisis for
decades. In the Bush administration, a deal was struck whereby the
United States would not protest construction inside existing
settlements so long as they did not expand outward.- The current crisis,
ostensibly about construction in Jerusalem, was manufactured by the
Obama administration--and as it is about Jerusalem, isn't even about
activity in the settlements.
- Every Israeli government since 1967, of left or right, has asserted
that Jerusalem is Israel's capital and has allowed Israeli Jews to
build there. The current crisis stems from the announcement of
plans--not actual construction--in a part of the city five blocks from
the 1967 lines and in a neighborhood that very clearly will remain part
of Israel after any negotiated settlement.
- To escalate that
announcement into a crisis in bilateral relations and "condemn"
it--using a verb we apply to acts of murder and terror, not acts of
housing construction--was a decision by the U.S. government, not a
natural or inevitable occurrence.
- Among the errors by the administration is the assertion that unless
all construction freezes, there can be no negotiations. There were
face-to-face peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians year
after year while construction took place in settlements and in
Jerusalem, so this is a new demand and a new obstacle to peace.
- The Obama administration
is imposing new demands on Israel, and building tensions in the
bilateral relationship, in an effort to destabilize the governing
coalition in Israel. It is a shameful way to treat an ally. (Council on Foreign Relations)
Administration's Condemnation a Larger Blunder
by Dan Senor
 The unauthorized announcement by an Israeli minister to build new housing units in the Jerusalem area was a diplomatic bumble. But the Obama administration's decision to "condemn" this mistake was a much larger blunder.- It should be no surprise that when the United States distances itself from Israel it does not win influence with the Arab world. What happens is the opposite: The Arab world follows suit and backs away from the peace process and Israel.
- The damage, however, does not end with the peace process. The whole flap is a distraction from the most urgent task, which is to stop Iran from going nuclear. (Council on Foreign Relations)
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Washington's Support for a Two-State Solution Puts It in Conflict with Jerusalem
by Steven A. Cook
 Various Israeli governments over the years have alternatively identified settlements as contributions to national security and/or a reflection of the inherent right of Israelis (and Jews from all of the world) to live in their biblical homeland.
- With anywhere from 300-500,000 Israelis living in all disputed territory combined (depending on whether one counts East Jerusalem) and all the attendant infrastructure that comes with 121 settlements, it has become increasingly hard to imagine a division of territory that would satisfy both Palestinian and Israeli political needs.
- Observers often invoke Jerusalem or refugees as the toughest issues in the conflict, and although they are not easy, one can imagine a resolution to these difficult problems. Not so with the settlements. As construction continues in both Jerusalem and the West Bank, a two-state solution looks less possible, undermining American diplomacy and prospects for regional stability. (Council on Foreign Relations)
Israel's Move Was Stupid, Dangerous, and Self-Defeating
by Leslie H. Gelb
 The working assumption is that if any nation can bring about peace between Israel and the Palestinians, it is the United States. Israel's move seriously undermined that perception. The disposition of Arab leaders to go along with future talks has been seriously eroded.
- Failure of those talks is precisely what Israeli right-wingers seek. To them, these talks lead only to Israeli concessions on the West Bank and ultimately East Jerusalem itself.
- Both sides have to move quickly to head off further escalation. At a minimum, Netanyahu has to suspend implementation of the offending announcement indefinitely. On a deeper level, Israel has to understand a basic reality: It is American power that gives the Jewish state a realistic hope of survival without constant war. (Council on Foreign Relations)
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