The U.S. administration’s efforts behind an Israel-crafted resolution is American imperialism masquerading as a peace process.
President Donald Trump in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, on Oct. 13, during a summit of world leaders on ending the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza (White House /Daniel Torok)
By Jeffrey D. Sachs and Sybil Fares
Common Dreams
The Trump administration is pushing an Israeli-crafted resolution at the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) this week aimed at eliminating the possibility of a State of Palestine.
The resolution does three things. It establishes U.S. political control over Gaza. It separates Gaza from the rest of Palestine. And it allows the U.S., and therefore Israel, to determine the timeline for Israel’s supposed withdrawal from Gaza -– which would mean: never.
This is imperialism masquerading as a peace process. In and of itself it’s no surprise. Israel runs U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. What is a surprise is that the U.S. and Israel might just get away with this travesty unless the world speaks up with urgency and indignation.
The draft UNSC resolution would establish a U.S.-U.K.-dominated Board of Peace, chaired by none other than Donald Trump himself, and endowed with sweeping powers over Gaza’s governance, borders, reconstruction and security. This resolution would sideline the State of Palestine and condition any transfer of authority to the Palestinians on the indulgence of the Board of Peace.
This would be an overt return to the British Mandate of 100 years ago, with the only change being that the U.S. would hold the mandate rather than Britain. If it weren’t so utterly tragic, it would be laughable. As Marx said, history repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce. Yes, the proposal is farce, yet Israel’s genocide is not. It is tragedy of the first order.
If it weren’t so utterly tragic, it would be laughable.
Michael G. Waltz, center, U.S. ambassador to the U.N, arriving at U.N. headquarters to present his credentials credentials to U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres on Sept. 21. (UN Photo/Mark Garten)
Incredibly, according to the draft resolution, the Board of Peace would be granted sovereign powers in Gaza. Palestinian sovereignty is left to the discretion of the board, which alone would decide when Palestinians are “ready” to govern themselves — perhaps in another 100 years?
Even military security is subordinated to the board, and the envisioned forces would answer not to the U.N. Security Council or to the Palestinian people, but to the board’s “strategic guidance.”
The U.S.-Israel resolution is being put forward precisely because the rest of the world — other than Israel and the U.S. — has woken up to two facts.
First, Israel is committing genocide, a reality witnessed every day in Gaza and the West Bank, where innocent Palestinians are murdered to the satisfaction of the Israel Defense Forces and the illegal Israeli settlers in the West Bank.
Second, Palestine is a state, albeit one whose sovereignty remains obstructed by the U.S., which uses its veto in the UNSC to block Palestine’s permanent U.N. membership.
At the U.N. this past July and then again in September, the U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelmingly for Palestine’s statehood, a fact that put the Israel-U.S. Zionist lobby into overdrive, resulting in the current draft resolution.
The U.N. General Assembly adopted a resolution to endorse the New York Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution on Sept. 12. (U.N. Photo/Loey Felipe)
For Israel to accomplish its goal of Greater Israel, the U.S. is pursuing a classic divide-and-conquer strategy, squeezing Arab and Islamic states with threats and inducements. When other countries resist the U.S.-Israel demands, they are cut off from critical technologies, lose access to World Bank and IMF financing, and suffer Israeli bombing, even in countries with U.S. military bases present.
The U.S. offers no real protection; rather, it orchestrates a protection racket, extracting concessions from countries wherever U.S. leverage exists. This extortion will continue until the global community stands up to such tactics and insists upon genuine Palestinian sovereignty and U.S. and Israeli adherence to international law.
Palestine remains the endless victim of U.S. and Israeli maneuvers. The results are not just devastating for Palestine, which has suffered an outright genocide, but for the Arab world and beyond. Israel and the U.S. are currently at war, overtly or covertly, across the Horn of Africa (Libya, Sudan, Somalia), the Eastern Mediterranean (Lebanon, Syria), the Gulf region (Yemen) and Western Asia (Iraq, Iran).
If the U.N. Security Council is to provide true security in accordance with the U.N. Charter, it must not yield to U.S. pressures and instead act decisively in line with international law.
A resolution truly for peace should include four vital points.
First, it should welcome the State of Palestine as a sovereign U.N. member state, with the U.S. lifting its veto.
Second, it should safeguard the territorial integrity of the State of Palestine and Israel, according to the 1967 borders.
Third, it should establish a UNSC-mandated protection force drawn up from Muslim-majority states.
Fourth, it should include the defunding and disarmament of all belligerent non-state entities, and it should ensure the mutual security of Israel and Palestine.
The two-state solution is about true peace — not about the politicide and genocide of Palestine, or the continued attacks by militants on Israel. It’s time for both Palestinians and Israelis to be safe, and for the U.S. and Israel to give up the cruel delusion of permanently ruling over the Palestinian people.
Jeffrey D. Sachs is a university professor and director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University, where he directed The Earth Institute from 2002 until 2016. He is also president of the U.N. Sustainable Development Solutions Network and a commissioner of the U.N. Broadband Commission for Development.
Sybil Fares is a specialist and adviser in Middle East policy and sustainable development at SDSN.
This article is from Common Dreams
Views expressed in this article and may or may not reflect those of Consortium News.
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We have on file the article called “The Harvard Boys Do Russia.” Those Harvard boys, Jeffrey Zachs, Robert Ruben and other Jewish, non-Jewish men went into Russia, latched on to a Russian Oligarch to enable the further disabling of Russia in the 1990s.
That cults’ sole intent was to PRIVATIZED Russia and turn it into another US Satellite.
Moreover, Mr. Zachs was involved in the debacle of “Yugoslavia” in the 1990s, as well.
A zebra can’t change its zebra stripes; neither can Zachs & his boys do likewise.
So, Chelsea – if we assume you are correct in describing Prof Sachs’ involvement in American involvement in Russia in the 1990’s, and the debacle of “Yugoslavia” (and I would have serious doubts about that), how does that say anything about his position on Palestine, and Israel, and its genocide? And, again assuming you are correct, your zebra stripes analogy is inept, as, I do believe a zebra has no choice regarding his stripes, but, last time I checked, a human being can change his positions, his stripes, so to speak.
You could do better also, to spell Prof Sachs name correctly.
I do not consider Jeffrey Sachs to be a true champion of the rights of the Palestinian people. He wants “the disarmament of all belligerent non-state entities”. By that he means the resistance to israel’s abominable, decades-long occupation.
He’s a Zionist. You can see that in his zealous advocacy of two-state-solution.
Annie MCSTRAVICK and Nyah –
I can’t think of more uniformed comments about Prof Sachs. There is in fact no greater champion of Palestinians rights than Sachs. He has repeatedly pointed out that under international law, the Palestinians have the right to resist, with violence if necessary, the illegal occupation by Israel.
And to claim that being in favour of the “two state solution” automatically makes you a Zionist, my goodness gracious! Just as there is no greater champion of the Palestinians, there is no more forceful and articulate condemnation of Zionism than you will find in Prof Sachs’ writings and speeches!!! You are apparently unaware, Nyah, that within the anti-zionist community there is a legitimate and thoughtful difference of opinion on the “two state solution.” But be assured that both points of view are decidedly anti-Zionist.
Larry McGovern
The Palestinians have the right to resist. Despite its nebulous nature, under international law the Palestinians may resist this miserable genocidal occupation.
Went to see the film Nuremburg last night. Good film, good story, great acting particularly Crowe. However, it was as I suspected, a not so subtle timely reminder to the World of Gideon Levy’s observation that there is historically only one victim, the Jews. To impress on us that really, Israel should have carte blanche to do what they like. Trumps entire Presidential promise to his voters has now been turned completely inside out to accommodate this. On a related tangent, the UN should be disbanded, it is a sick joke. Saudi voted chair of the women’s rights board? Really? If I was doing the UK budget a red pen would go through their contributions, as well as the WHO and all these corrupt orgs.
“the continued attacks by militants on Israel”
Militants? Really? So you believe Palestinians *prefer* violence over any other form in their fight for their very existence??
Incredibly poor choice of words Mr. Sachs, considering the ongoing genocidal intent all people living in Palestine have been forced to endure for over 80 years and counting by those you appear to want legitimised.
Sadly, the whole UNSC gives its blessing, including Russia and China. No credibility for a multipolar world. Either every country that votes “Yea” or withheld a veto is craven and evil, or weak and cowardly. Russia and China chose to go along with this anyway, no matter what it costs their reputation and the future of humanity to legitimize genocide, dismantle sovereign and indigenous rights to self-determination, and bring back colonialism. None of these countries can ever undo the stain they have made.
If tomorrow the UNSC votes to put Crimea or Taiwan under a Trump “Governing Board”, of course Russia or China would re-discover their veto. But now they are playing the same game of hypocrisy and lawlessness as the US, on a slippery slope of their own choosing. No excuses for anyone.
Very sad and disappointing indeed.
And your comparison with Crimea and Taiwan fits perfectly.
thank you again, jeffrey sachs and sybil fares,
for laying out what considerate advocates of
peaceful coexistence should do.
i find both breathtaking and infuriating the speed at which
neo-colonialists prove that they have no intention of sharing,
much less relinquishing power, no consideration for others
and, alas, the firepower + clout, i.e. brute force, to get their way.
… UNLESS the international community finds its
conviction and the strength to RESIST them NOW.
i don’t want to doubt that but i … do – barring the
occurrence of a true political and humanitarian miracle.
There can be no two state solution at this point. I wish Professor Sachs would give that up. It’s time to declare the British mandate of an Israeli state a failure . It’s been an abomination from the get go and has only caused destabilization, pain, suffering, and mass death in the region. Palestine should return to its former borders.
The Israeli leadership must be tried for committing genocide, found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. The enablers of this genocide must also be held to account in an international tribunal.
We must force the blood thirsty power structure out of power. If we fail to do that, the future will be very dark indeed.
I could not agree more.
Johnathan Cook makes this observation in another CN piece: “Israel is their (the plutocracy’s) vision of the future: the model of a fortress state in which they believe they can protect themselves from the people whose lives they are destroying around the globe.
“Israel is also the laboratory where they can test and refine the surveillance technology, the weapons and the policing methods they will need if they are to keep their own publics controlled and subdued….”
It seems to me that this should be the foundational understanding that informs the designs of all truly constructive actions…and that would stand in the way of any actions that didn’t substantively address it.