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There's a flicker of hope in Riyadh
The fact that Saudi Arabia is hosting the Arab League summit will boost its chances of success.
- By Osama Al Sharif, Special to Gulf News
- Published: 00:00 March 26, 2007
A flurry of diplomatic activity a few days before Arab leaders hold their annual summit, this time in the Saudi capital Riyadh, could be interpreted as a hopeful sign. Historically the Arab League is associated with failure rather than success and the summit has come to symbolise disunity and impotence instead of resolve and breakthroughs. Why should this year's summit be any different?
For starters the fact that the summit is taking place on its set date is an achievement. The Arab world is in a mess and the onus will be on the leaders to adopt a united stand on such thorny issues as Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine and Sudan, in addition to resolving bilateral issues that have marred relations between countries for years.
The fact that Saudi Arabia is hosting the summit will boost its chances of success. In recent months Riyadh has been spearheading diplomatic efforts to contain endemic crises. It successfully mediated a truce between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and leaders of Hamas, initiated dialogue with Tehran and intervened to end the political stalemate in Lebanon. The fate of the Arab peace initiative, first proposed by the then Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz in the Beirut summit in 2002, will be decided in Riyadh as well.
But this time it is not only moderate Arab countries that are looking for ways to jump-start the Palestinian-Israeli peace process, help end the war in Iraq and pacify parties in Lebanon.
Options
In recent months the Bush administration began reviewing its options in the Middle East and is now seriously looking for something to salvage its failed policies there. After abandoning the peace process for years, Washington is again working with its Arab allies to revive it. As it runs out of options in Iraq, and with increasing political pressure from a Democratic-led Congress to commit to a pullout plan, the Bush administration is looking for ways to contain the fallout from its military misadventure.
High on the US agenda is the perceived Iranian threat, not only in Iraq, but regionally as well. Washington needs the support of its Arab allies to stand up to Tehran's growing influence in the Gulf and elsewhere. But the Arabs, as it was made clear by Jordan's King Abdullah in his address to Congress a few weeks ago, continue to regard the Arab-Israeli conflict as their main concern. They want America to recommit to the peace process and force Israel to return to the negotiation table.
In recent days the status quo has changed. The Palestinians finally formed a national unity government, diluting Hamas's control and opening the road for the US and the rest of the world to remove sanctions and re-establish contacts with the Palestinian leadership.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has returned to the region to focus on ways to revive the peace process. The Arabs have presented an alternative to the failed Roadmap for peace. With Washington showing an interest in the Arab peace offer, Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has had to tag along describing the initiative as "interesting".
Although Arab League Secretary-General Amr Mousa had rejected Israeli calls to amend the Arab peace initiative, there is still a possibility that certain aspects of it could still be negotiated if the US decides to embrace it by the time Arab leaders meet in Riyadh next week.
Yet Arab-Israeli peace is not the only burning issue on Arab leaders' agenda. Iraq will figure high in the discussions. Lebanon, Sudan, Somalia and other issues will also be discussed by Arab foreign ministers before carefully written resolutions are sent to the Arab leaders later on. But while there will be general agreement on some matters, discord might still seep into others.
Bilateral relations between Riyadh and Damascus have been sour since the assassination of Lebanon's former prime minister Rafik Hariri two years ago. Syria's President Bashar Al Assad will want to end his isolation especially since his alliance with Iran and Hezbollah is increasingly becoming a liability. Damascus is also worried about being implicated in Hariri's death by the proposed international tribunal. Sudan's President Omar Al Bashir, on the other hand, will seek Arab support for Khartoum's position on Darfur and the threat of more sanctions.
In spite of the usual doom and gloom that accompanies the convening of the Arab summit, there is reason to hope that something good could come out of Riyadh next week. The moderate front is pushing to get America's political involvement in reviving the peace process.
If they secure such commitment then a flicker of hope could raise morale in an otherwise depressed region.
Osama Al Sharif is a Jordanian journalist based in Amman.
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