'Mideast peace conference is just a PR campaign'

Washington, Dec 2: Experts have cast their doubt on the effectiveness of Mideast peace conference, by theorizing that the talks are simply a public relations campaign.

Experts at the Central Michigan University have stated, that given the history of Middle East peace talks, the Annapolis, Md. conference that began on Nov. 27 is basically to appease the public.

Moataz Fattah, assistant professor of political science, said: "A quick look at this 30-year cycle of events might help us figure how complicated the situation is and why we might not really achieve much through the Annapolis Middle East conference."

“Each 30 years, in the same month, there has been an attempt to solve the Arab-Israeli conflict. The conflict is so protracted and overlapping that it cannot be solved with an even-handed attitude on the part of the mediator and a strong commitment on the part of the parties to build trust and work together. This conference most likely will be nothing more than a public relations campaign that will not change much on the ground," he added.

John Robertson, professor of history, said: "After years of tracking Israeli-Palestinian relationships and exploring their longer history, I can only view the Annapolis conference as one of those feel-good moments manufactured for public consumption and as one recent notice put it, an opportunity for an "iconic" photo like the one of Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin shaking hands on the White House lawn in 1993, with Bill Clinton literally pulling them toward each other."

“On Tuesday it was Ehud Olmert and Mahmud Abbas shaking hands, embraced by George W. Bush. The 1993 handshake marked the agreement of the famous Oslo Accords, of which much was hoped, but from which little was produced because of opposition to it by factions from both sides.

“ The same will happen here, with the initial hopes of progress much less realistic. The three leaders involved in 2007 are incomparably weaker politically than the three of 1993," he added.

Alper Yilmaz Dede, instructor of political science, said that the Annapolis meetings can potentially lead to groundbreaking results about the Israeli-Palestinian problem which has been around since 1948.

“One interesting fact about the talks is that two major political actors of the Middle East also are attending the peace conference: Syria and Saudi Arabia. Since last year, some Israeli and Palestinian politicians have been seriously talking about a "two-state" solution," he said.

“So, I think the major focus of the peace talks is going to be the terms and conditions of this two-state solution which will create an independent Palestinian state," he added.

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