Lieberman: Concessions won't bring peace

[Moledet]

New Foreign Minister Lieberman delivers aggressive speech Wednesday, hinting of policy to be adopted by ministry; Israel made more concessions than any other country, constantly uttering word 'peace' won't bring peace, he says

New minister, new attitude: Concessions are not the way to make peace, incoming Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Wednesday during the changing of the guard ceremony at the Foreign Ministry.

"Those who think that through concessions they will gain respect and peace are wrong," the new minister said. "It's the other way around; it will lead to more wars."

Following Lieberman's speech, outgoing Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni whispered in his ear: "I became convinced that I was wise not to join the government."

Lieberman, who will also serve as deputy prime minister, delivered an aggressive speech, noting that "by uttering the word peace 20 times a day we won't make peace."

"Those who want peace should prepare for war and be strong," he added. "There is no country that made concessions like Israel. Since 1967 we gave up territory that is three times the size of Israel. We showed willingness. The Oslo process started back in 1993 and to this day I have not seen that we reached peace."

Moderate tone on Egypt
Lieberman added that Israel is not obligated by the Annapolis conference, but rather, only by the Road Map initiative.

Turning his attention to Egypt – a target for harsh criticism on his part in the past – Lieberman adopted a more moderate tone.

"Egypt is an important element in the Arab world and in the world in general," he said. "I will certainly be happy to visit Egypt, but I'll also be happy to see Egypt's leaders visit here, including the Egyptian foreign minister. I respect others and I want them to respect us; I'm in favor of the principle of reciprocity."

The new foreign minister also adopted a tough tone towards ministry officials, telling them that workdays start at 7:30 am and that the daily evening meeting will be held at 10 pm.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3695840,00.html

Note that he was quoting Professor Aumann, noble prize winner for his work in game-theory. He said, "those who seek peace now will get war, those who want peace in the future will get it now" and he doesn't rely on thin air but on game-theory.

[RoyB]

Well, all of those speeches are useless if he gets indited..

[NimDod]

Note that he was quoting Professor Aumann, noble prize winner for his work in game-theory. He said, "those who seek peace now will get war, those who want peace in the future will get it now" and he doesn't rely on thin air but on game-theory.

The original Latin of the expression "if you want peace prepare for war" comes from "Epitoma Rei Militaris," by Vegetius.
The Latin is: "Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum."

[tyovan]

He certainly makes some valid points. Israel has been negotiating with these people for decades - and what do they have to show for it? Rockets, suicide bombers, and kidnappers. How can you make peace with someone who, when you offer your hand in peace, he puts his hand around your neck to kill you?

[Mr Gently Benevolent]

He certainly makes some valid points. Israel has been negotiating with these people for decades - and what do they have to show for it? Rockets, suicide bombers, and kidnappers. How can you make peace with someone who, when you offer your hand in peace, he puts his hand around your neck to kill you?Neither side has made any real effort, it’s about time the west inflicted sanctions on both parties. I will admit that some Israeli governments have gone out of their way to accommodate the Palestinians demands but I get the distinct feeling that all three parties need a good shove in the right direction.

[Moledet]

Neither side has made any real effort, it’s about time the west inflicted sanctions on both parties. I will admit that some Israeli governments have gone out of their way to accommodate the Palestinians demands but I get the distinct feeling that all three parties need a good shove in the right direction.
The answer you will get from Lieberman is, "I am for sanctions, we will be able to solve the conflict in a month though not really the way you imagine but you will get over it."

[Mr Gently Benevolent]

The answer you will get from Lieberman is, "I am for sanctions, we will be able to solve the conflict in a month though not really the way you imagine but you will get over it."Well yeah Lieberman has got that whole nightclub doorman outlook, a few heads cracked and problem solved. Sadly I don't see a lot of progress in the next few years this coalition will turn into a melee and Hamas have boxed themselves into an ideological corner.

[gaijinsamurai]

To be honest, I prefer Lieberman to Netenyahu. I may disagree with him, but he's upfront and you know where he stands. I respect that.

[spider1]

He is right in 99999999999999%-we left Gaza in 2005 and we got Hamas in 2007 and much more rocket attacks. Its land for terror not for peace.

[bbsh]

Neither side has made any real effort, it’s about time the west inflicted sanctions on both parties. I will admit that some Israeli governments have gone out of their way to accommodate the Palestinians demands but I get the distinct feeling that all three parties need a good shove in the right direction.

I think the evacuation from gush katif was the biggest step any party involved has taken to work towards a scenario where peace can be achieved..

If the situation was more optimistic after the pull out, it would have paved the way for even more concessions, unfortunately the situation today is bad and the left has been severely weakened, the right has been strengthened..

For once in history the Palestinians have autonomy on a piece of land.. The Turks didnt give it to them, neither did the Egyptians or the Jordanians, Israel did and the palestinians effectively shot themselves in the foot..

[Kaplanr]

To be honest, I prefer Lieberman to Netenyahu. I may disagree with him, but he's upfront and you know where he stands. I respect that.

They used to say that about Sharon too!

[gaijinsamurai]

I was surprised when Sharon said that the settlements in Judea and Samaria were bad for Israel.

[Teme]

Everyone with sane mind understand that there will not be peace until:
- Palestinians -all factions - recognize Israel's right to exist
- Israel dismantles settlements in occupied areas

[Moledet]

Everyone with sane mind understand that there will not be peace until:
- Palestinians -all factions - recognize Israel's right to exist
- Israel dismantles settlements in occupied areas
Anyone with a sane mind knows that removing 400,000 people is impossible since it will cost more than the national GDP in compensations alone, will require more soldiers than the IDF has and will take years.

The only way they will get a country is if they agree to exchange the land in Judah and Samaria that the large settlements are on, for land in the triangle area.

[Kaplanr]

Makes the drive to Afula and Beit Shean from the Center interesting. Have to see how Yizrael feels about being a border settlement. Also means the best pitot would be over the border. OTOH, wouldn't mind kissing Majd-el-Krum goodbye.

[gammbino]

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Best of the Web Today: 3/30/09

By James Taranto

"Authorities in an impoverished Palestinian refugee camp have shut down a youth orchestra, boarded up its rehearsal studio and banned its conductor from the camp after she took 13 young musicians to perform for Holocaust survivors," the Associated Press (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090329/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_palestinians_orchestra) reports:

Conductor Wafa Younes took the children from her Strings of Freedom orchestra to sing songs of peace last week as part of an annual Good Deeds Day organized by Israel's richest woman. But once parents and leaders back in West Bank's Jenin refugee camp realized where the group had been, they shut down the program, saying Younes had dragged the children into a political issue. . . .
A community leader in the Jenin camp, Adnan Hindi, said the musicians' parents had not known where Younes was taking their children and were angry when they learned of the performance from media reports.
"She exploited the children for a big political issue," said Hindi, head of a camp committee responsible for municipal duties.The Associated Press makes vague references to "authorities" and "a community leader," but you have to go to Israel's Arutz Sheva (http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/130663) to learn that these leaders are affiliated with the Palestinian Authority and Fatah, the "moderate" faction of Mahmoud Abbas.

At one level, this is a comical story. As anti-Israel gestures go, it's hard to imagine one more futile. The orchestra's audience, after all, consisted of people who survived Nazi death camps. No doubt they will survive this indignity. (As for Younes, she lives in an Arab village within Israel, so her banishment isolates Jenin, not her.) Yet there are real victims in this incident--namely, the 13 youngsters who are being deprived of what one surmises is a rare opportunity to engage in a beautiful and elevating activity.

Hindi's comment that Younes "exploited the children for a big political issue" is especially risible given the Palestinian political culture that glorifies so-called martyrdom--that literally sacrifices its children by using them as suicide bombers and human shields.

Yet while using children as instruments of war is far more depraved than forbidding them to play instruments for peace, in purely practical terms the latter is more senseless. Shutting down Younes's orchestra terrorizes no Israeli and inspires no one's sympathy for the Palestinian cause. It accomplishes nothing except to make the Palestinians look both malevolent and weak.

In foreign-policy circles, there is an idea--to which the Obama administration seems more sympathetic than the Bush administration was--that if the U.S. puts enough pressure on Jerusalem, it can bring about peace between Israel and the Palestinians. This idea is often presented under the rubric of "realism." The story of Wafa Younes and her youth orchestra is a timely reminder that Palestinian intransigence is the biggest obstacle to peace, and that this so-called realism is anything but.

[spider1]

Anyone with a sane mind knows that removing 400,000 people is impossible since it will cost more than the national GDP in compensations alone, will require more soldiers than the IDF has and will take years.

The only way they will get a country is if they agree to exchange the land in Judah and Samaria that the large settlements are on, for land in the triangle area.
You suggest we need to give them um el fahem in exchange? they will use it as a missile base. I think the government needs to try to offer them money to leave the country.

[Moledet]

Makes the drive to Afula and Beit Shean from the Center interesting. Have to see how Yizrael feels about being a border settlement. Also means the best pitot would be over the border. OTOH, wouldn't mind kissing Majd-el-Krum goodbye.
It's all of them: Taybe, Baka, Tira, Umm el Fahem, Kfar Qasem, Kalanswa, Kfar Kara, Barta'a, Musmus.
Won't miss any of them.