It is essential that voices, opinions and worldviews on all sides be included in an earnest attempt to offer a credible political horizon on the heels of the latest round of violence. Focusing on shrinking secular, liberal-minded constituencies and jumping too hastily to final status negotiations will undoubtedly lead to the same disappointing results. Religious voices and those who hold illiberal perspectives are critical to creating the majorities needed for progress on both the Israeli and Palestinian sides.
Establishing a viable political horizon when Israeli and Palestinian leaders are in disarray and America is concentrating elsewhere is vexing. Still, the US has the tools and leverage to accomplish its objectives, if nothing else to preserve the opportunity of a negotiated two-state outcome for when the time is ripe. Blinken reestablished the US as the leading process orchestrator during his regional tour by reaffirming the special US-Israeli relationship, charting a regional approach during his strategic meetings in Amman and Cairo and resetting the US-Palestinian relationship by announcing the administration’s intent to reopen the US Consulate in Jerusalem.
Blinken highlighted the necessity of empowering moderate political forces in the region at the expense of extremists. To successfully do so, the US must engage leaders who do not accept a two-state paradigm and recognize both Jewish and Palestinian (Muslim and Christian) attachments – national and religious – to the entire land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea and prod other countries to extend recognition while promoting mechanisms that humanize the populations toward one another. As the process orchestrator, the US would be wise to reframe the short-term goal of a political process from reaching an all-encompassing “end of the conflict” – which requires the forfeiting of sacred values for important religious constituencies – to a concept of “sustainable peace,” in which the permanency of compromises is not a focal point.
The US can then take steps with the parties to simultaneously improve lives, advance rights and narrow the conflict. These measures must be pursued in parallel in order to avoid the trap of an “economic peace” that normalizes the status quo. Improvements in jobs, housing, freedom of movement, technology, water, family reunification and security can be achieved early on. Taken together with steps focused on peoplehood, dignity and attachment to the land, the combined effort of “nuts and bolts” initiatives and addressing deeply-held narratives will give moderates the political victories they desperately need and lay the groundwork for constituencies for peace.
An inclusive political process can increase zones for possible agreement by widening the narrative frame and repackaging old issues in a context that is more acceptable and humanizing. This US-led approach can improve conditions for Israelis and Palestinians without compromising security and minimize the conflict by narrowing the disagreements between the sides. Inclusiveness is a winner for moderates and “kryptonite” for extremists.
The writer is a former member of Congress from Florida (1997-2010) and serves as the President of the S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace. Today the Center is launching www.progressispossible.org, laying out its vision of what an inclusive strategy looks like.