UAE | General
Blair: 'two-state solution can solve Mideast crisis'
There is no solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict except the two-state solution, which would see a Palestinian state created alongside Israel, Middle East Quartet envoy Tony Blair told a Ramadan majlis in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday night.
- By Samir Salama, Associate Editor
- Published: 22:55 September 3, 2009
- Image Credit: WAM
- Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan with Middle East Quartet envoy Blair during the lecture at the Ramadan majlis in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday night.
Abu Dhabi: There is no solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict except the two-state solution, which would see a Palestinian state created alongside Israel, Middle East Quartet envoy Tony Blair told a Ramadan majlis in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday night.
"There is no solution except a two-state solution, but we've got to deal with the genuine Israeli security problem in order to remove the justification of those who use that security problem," Blair said at the majlis of General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
Blair, who spearheads efforts to promote Israeli-Palestinian peace talks on behalf of the Mideast Quartet of the EU, Russia, the UN and the US, added there is no way this will happen unless it is guided by America and the international community, peace negotiations are resumed as soon as possible and Israel's security problem is dealt with.
The former British premier said he is a medium-term optimist that the Middle East issue will be resolved.
"There is a greater focus on trying to get this issue resolved today, US President Barack Obama made it a key priority at the start of his presidency and the Arab nations have come together around the Arab peace Initiative," he said.
He added everybody now understands from Europe, Russia, the United nations, America, the Arab and Muslim world that this is a vital issue to resolve.
Blair said he believes the Middle East issue cannot be resolved except on the basis of "some idea of justice and even-handedness".
"People in the West have sided with Israel against the interests of the Palestinian people," he said.
However, Blair did not see any change of alliances. "What is actually changing today is not that America is any less the friend of Israel. But it is that America understands that it also has a strategic interest today in alliance with the Arab world too. So it is not that one [alliance replaces] the other."
Blair said globalisation is not just an economic phenomenon.
"Globalisation is social, cultural and political and it changes dramatically the environment in which the world functions. It is opening the world up, presenting the people with a choice to be open to it or close to it and it is meeting the challenges we increasingly face in common and then require global alliances."
Blair stressed if a nation wants to deal with any of the current challenges, that nation will not succeed if it act on its own.
He also noted that globalisation is also shifting power to the East. "The West for the first time in centuries is having to come to terms with ... the emerging powers in the East - China, India and the Middle East."
Do you agree that a two-state solution is the only answer? If not, what do you think would be the best solution? Tell us below.
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