Syria is devastated by
civil war. Egypt is immersed in violent turmoil by Islamist insurgents.
Iran continues to work on advanced centrifuges at an alarming pace, and
al-Qaida and affiliated groups continue to threaten traditional Arab
regimes and Western interests throughout the area.
With the region aflame
and so many crises demanding attention, the U.S. has made a baffling
decision to focus on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and make it the
crux of its Middle East policy.
U.S. Secretary of State
Kerry has made nearly a dozen visits to the region in the last year in
an unceasing effort to broker an agreement between Israelis and
Palestinians. He is expected to announce a framework for a peace deal in
the coming weeks.
While everyone wishes
for peace, many of us in Congress are troubled that the Obama
administration is unduly pressuring Israel into making far-reaching
concessions in peace talks with the Palestinians, concessions that may
be detrimental to Israel's long-term security.
I believe that direct
negotiation between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, without
pressure from a third party, is the only path to a true peace. History
has repeatedly shown that outside pressure, however well-intended, is a
recipe for failure.
Moreover, our concern
over the administration's tactics is heightened by the fact that this
pressure is coming under the shadow of a nuclear-armed Iran. Indeed,
Iran is continuing to spin its centrifuges, and work on more advanced
ones, and top officials have said they will never dismantle them.
After years of
sanctions which brought Iran to the negotiating table, there are growing
indications that Iran's economy is improving because of changing market
expectations resulting from the easing of sanctions. Just this month,
the largest European business delegation in more than three decades
visited Iran, a group that included a French delegation of more than 100
potential investors from some of France's largest companies. In such an
atmosphere, the West is losing its greatest leverage in advance of the
resumption of talks with Iran on a final agreement.
Russia's economy
minister is headed to Tehran in April to discuss a broad range of trade
issues and there are reports of an oil-for-goods deal between Russia and
Iran worth an estimated $1.5 billion a month despite adamant U.S.
opposition. With the weakening of sanctions, we are also witnessing an
increase in Iranian oil exports.
Iranian President
Hassan Rouhani's message is that Iran is open for business, while Iran
advances its nuclear weapons program, including development of ballistic
missiles. Little wonder that the CNN host who recently interviewed
Rouhani called the U.S.'s Iran policy a "train wreck."
We should be putting
pressure where it belongs -- on our enemies, not on our friends.
Especially at this time, Israel must not be coerced into any moves that
could endanger its security.
It is my belief that a strong majority in Congress shares this view.
In the meantime,
continued economic progress on the West Bank will do more to bring about
the kind of solution the U.S. administration wants. Progress will
improve the quality of life of Palestinians, and thereby indirectly
weaken Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
A viable peace can only be worked out in direct bilateral negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.
Doug Lamborn is the U.S.
congressman representing Colorado's 5th district, a member of the House
Armed Services Committee, and co-chairman of the bipartisan
Congressional Israel Allies Caucus.
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