"The Israeli occupation has lasted too long. Hollywood gets it; Washington should too." Palestine's Maen Rashid Areikat... The U.S. must push to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, not just manage it.

"The potential for an agreement is there; we just need to create the conditions for it to succeed. The two sides can capitalize on progress made since the Taba talks of 2001. Everybody knows the parameters: a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders with mutually agreed-upon land swaps similar in size and quality, a shared capital in Jerusalem, acceptable and legitimate security arrangements and an agreed-upon and just solution to the Palestinian refugee problem based on the 1948 United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194. The success of any political process depends on clear terms of reference, a clear time frame and a clear endgame." Maen Rashid Areikat

Maen Rashid Areikat is chief representative of the general delegation of the Palestine Liberation Organization to the United States.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-areikat-israeli-palestian-talks-20130219,0,7659433.story

Op-Ed

Moving past stalemate in the Middle East

The U.S. must push to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, not just manage it.

Secretary of State John Kerry speaks during his ceremonial swearing in at the State Department in Washington, D.C. (Alex Wong / Getty Images / February 6, 2013)

 By Maen Rashid Areikat

February 19, 2013

With the U.S. administration's foreign policy team shaping up and planned visits by President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry to the Middle East, there are renewed hopes for movement on the political process. While welcoming these developments, we believe the effectiveness of the U.S. role in the region hinges on a robust and sustained policy pushing toward the resolution of the conflict as opposed to just managing it.

Although the recent Israeli elections showed how passive and indifferent Israelis have become about resolving the conflict with the Palestinians, I believe many outside observers are misreading the situation. The Israeli public is sheltered, even blinded, from seeing the immense and imminent danger facing Israel if the two-state solution collapses. The relative calm along with economic prosperity are contributing to the false impression that all is well, when the reality is quite different...READ MORE