Major Points in John Kerry’s Speech on U.S. Israeli-Palestine Policy 28 December 2016

Major Points in John Kerry’s Speech on U.S. Israeli-Palestine Policy

28 December 2016

Kerry’s Thesis: Peace between Israel and Palestine requires a cessation of the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, a region that Israel agreed to return to Palestinian sovereignty in the Oslo Accords. It equally demands a cessation of all aggression toward Israel by Palestinian terrorists, also part of the Oslo Accords agreement.

Note: This speech was part tutorial and part argument for the thesis. This summary includes points made in brackets [ ] for supplementary information not included in Secretary Kerry’s comments. All maps are supplementary information. Kerry’s 1-hour 15-minute speech was repetitive; this summary is intended to be less so.

1. Anti-Semitism in Western Europe rose throughout the first half of the 1900s, culminating in the genocide of Jews during WWII. The first talks among Jewish leaders about the need for a separate homeland were held long before WWII began.
2. The U.N. [created in 1945] recognized the need to create a separate nation-state for Jews in their religious homeland. The U.N. came to a formal decision on the creation of Israel in 1947.
3. Israel officially became a separate nation on 14 May 1948. [Not mentioned: This was the day before the “British Mandate” that controlled Palestine was to end.] The separation gave Israel approximately half the area of land of Palestine, as Palestine had been under the British Mandate. [Kerry emphasized what an imperative implementation it was for Jews to have this holy land.] [Insertion of map for clarity in this summary. Israeli land shown in yellow.]
   
   
4. In 1967, Israel launched the Six-Day War [against Egypt, Syria, and Jordan]. The outcome of that war was that Israel claimed the West Bank [until then, part of Jordan], the Golan Heights [until then, part of Syria], and the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula [until then, Sinai territory]. [Map for clarity in this summary, below. Israeli-claimed territory shown in purple with additional Palestinian territory under Israeli control shown in yellow.]
   
   
5. The Oslo Accords were signed [in 1993 and 1995] by Israel and the representative of the Palestinian state. Two parts of the Accords were an Israeli agreement to turn over the West Bank and Gaza Strip [Golan Heights not focused on here] to Palestinian control and a Palestinian agreement to recognize Israeli’s right to exist in peace and an end to Palestinian terrorism.
6. Neither of these two agreements in the Oslo Accords was fully honored by either side. But as Israel’s Shimon Perez said, “The original mandate gave the Palestinians 48 percent, now it’s down to 22 percent. I think 78 percent is enough for us.” [This quote goes to Kerry's argument about curtailing further settlement expansion.]
7. The U.S. is committed to having Israel and Palestine negotiate their own terms of peace and division of territories. It is not the place of the U.S. to dictate those terms nor will it.
8. The United States is Israel’s most staunch ally and always has been. The U.S. has consistently vetoed U.N. resolutions that demanded changes in Israeli actions, resolutions that often did not demand an equal change in Palestinian actions.
9. The U.S., in supporting Israel’s right to safety and peace, provides enormous amounts of military aid [approximately 3 billion USD]. During the current presidential administration, the amount of intelligence that the U.S. has shared with Israel has been dramatically higher than at any previous time. Israeli leaders acknowledge that this has been a very important augmentation of U.S. military assistance. Joint training exercises and continuous upgrades of Israeli air power are part of U.S. support.
10. The Palestinians absolutely must stop their terrorist attacks on Israel, and Palestinian leaders must openly demonstrate that those attacks are unacceptable. There is absolutely no path to peace until this happens. The current two situations of terrorism and implicit support for it are unacceptable to Israel and unacceptable to the United States. [This was repeated many times throughout the speech.]
11. Nearly all countries agree that a two-state solution is the only solution that can provide sustained peace in the region. This improved stability extends far beyond Israel and Palestine because other Arab countries have stated that they will only strengthen their support for Israel’s sovereignty and expand economic relations with Israel when the two-state solution is implemented. These commitments have been part of the extended negotiations that the current U.S. administration has been part of, with Kerry as the primary U.S. participant during his tenure as Secretary of State. However, further expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank will increase tensions with other Arab countries.
12. “Two nations for two peoples.” [a refrain during the speech]
13. It would be against fundamental U.S. democratic principles to abandon a two-state solution: “Without a two-state solution, Israel can either be a Jewish state or a democracy, but not both.” The U.S. stands with Israel on the importance of Israel being both.
14. Israeli settlements in the West Bank continue to expand strategically, in such a way that a separate and effective Palestinian state is becoming impossible, logistically. However, it is up to the Palestinians and Israelis (not other nations) to work out a mutually-agreeable solution to the Israeli settlements.
15. In a two-state solution, Palestine would continue to be a region without militarization and must include provisions to ensure Israel’s safety against hostilities or aggression by neighboring Arab states.
16. The West Bank Palestinians go through Israeli checkpoints that make normal life very difficult. Access is fully restricted to Israelis in “Area C” of the West Bank. [Area A is Palestinian-controlled. Area B is a Palestinian civil area with Israeli military control.]
    
    N.B. Clear and verifiable facts about the number and distribution of Israeli checkpoints is difficult to come by. Israel posts maps of the walls they’ve constructed, but not the checkpoints (some of which are pop-up checkpoints). Some sources state that there are over 600 checkpoints and roadblocks within the West Bank region, with further restriction of Palestinian movement added after two deadly Intifadas by a group of Palestinians. Palestinian movement does not pass through Israeli settlements. The checkpoint map posted by the BBC uses Palestinian information about major checkpoints. The map of Areas A, B, and C uses a pro-Israeli website's map. Area A is shown in yellow, Area B is shown in brown, Area C is shown in blue.
    
       
     
17. The Gaza Strip people are destitute and have limited access to food or materials with which to create jobs that would enable them to be self-sufficient. Access to medical care in the Gaza Strip is severely limited. Israel has five security-gated crossing points on its border with Gaza. Despite Israeli walls and guarded crossing points to protect Israel from attacks, Palestinians keep tunneling under the walls. This is unacceptable to the U.S. as it reduces Israel’s safety. 
18. The next presidential administration has stated its intentions to support further Israeli expansion into the West Bank. While that is that administration’s decision to make, it should make that decision cautiously, with an understanding that it will essentially kill the possibility of a two-party solution that is Israel’s only hope for peace.