Interview: Tzipi Livni

Israel’s leading opposition politician says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu needs to “face reality” and work toward a two-state solution with the Palestinians -- before it’s too late.

INTERVIEW BY DAVID KENNER | MARCH 7, 2010

Tzipi Livni has led Israel into war, and also attempted to guide it to peace. She played an integral role in Israel's 2006 war with Hezbollah as foreign minister in the government of Ehud Olmert, and negotiated the agreement, enshrined as U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, that ended the conflict. In 2008, she held talks on the "core issues" of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with former Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei -- the first time such discussions had been held since the acrimonious collapse of the Camp David talks in 2000. Israel's Knesset elections, held in February 2009, presented a mixed bag: Her Kadima Party won more seats than any other party, but the Israeli right captured a majority of the total vote.

Rather than bring her party into a government headed by Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu, Livni elected to join the opposition. She has assailed the Netanyahu government for overseeing a "serious decline in Israel's standing around the world," and for failing to resume peace talks with the Palestinian Authority. Foreign Policy spoke with Livni shortly after the announcement that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas would agree to a U.S. proposal for "indirect talks," marking the tentative resumption of negotiations for the first time since 2008. The position of Livni, who told FP's David Kenner that an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal is "the reason for me to be in politics," will do much to determine whether this new round talks sputters to a halt or leads to serious negotiations between the two sides. Excerpts:

Foreign Policy: It appears that Abbas will agree to resume proximity talks. Is it a diplomatic victory that the talks are being renewed, or is it a step backwards from the direct diplomacy of previous governments?

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Tzipi Livni: Direct talks are very important. I think that the best thing to do is continue from where we stopped -- there is no need to start all over again. It is true that 16 years passed [after the Oslo Accords], and during all these years we had ongoing negotiations. [When I was] representing the Israeli interest [during] the negotiations, there is nothing that I discussed or agreed with the Palestinians that any Israeli prime minister who wants to make peace cannot agree to. I believe that we need to continue from where we stopped -- and when I say from where we stopped, it means from where the negotiation teams led by Abu Alaa [Qurei] and myself left off [in late 2008].

I'm glad to see the beginning of something, but for me the goal is not the negotiations -- the goal is the peace treaty. There is a big question mark [as to] whether this is just the beginning of a dialogue, or it is going to lead to a real peace treaty. For me, this is the real issue, and this is the goal: To end the conflict and [sign] a peace treaty. We faced a situation in the past in which negotiations led to more frustration, and blaming one another.

Ronen Zvulun-Pool/Getty Images

 

Tzipi Livni is a former Israeli foreign minister and the leader of the Kadima Party. David Kenner is assistant editor at Foreign Policy.

DAVID IN DC

5:55 AM ET

March 8, 2010

I would have asked

Given the rift between Hamas and Fatah and the fact that one accepts a two state solution and one doesn't, coupled with what seems like everyone pushing or an artifically accelerated timetable, if you were PM where do you see negotiations ending up? A Palestinian state in the West Bank with whom you have a peace treaty on one side, and the same Hamas controlled Gaza on the other; or a comprehensive peace treaty? Is the latter realistic?

 

PRAKSEDA

1:36 PM ET

March 9, 2010

Palestine and Israel

The US press doesn`t help, but can we please all educate ourselves a bit in this country about these issues?
Try Rene Backmann`s "A Wall in Palestine", tr. A. Kaiser, 2010 (Picador-MacMillan).
25 years + in the region, Backmann has written the book we all need to read.

 

JKOLAK

12:32 PM ET

March 8, 2010

Any chance of peace?

Given that many Palestinians cannot accept the existence of Israel, is there really any chance at all that a peace treaty will be signed under any conditions?

I don't think it will come until Palestinians are convinced that they cannot succeed in the destruction of Israel and tire of constant violence.

Another problem is the Middle Eastern culture of revenge. So many people cannot accept peace because someone close to them was killed, injured, or otherwise suffered some kind of loss. That they might have been in the wrong and deserved the consequence is irrelevant in such thinking.

The western way to forgive and forget, as demonstrated by the rebuilding of Germany and Japan, seems to foreign to the region.

 

HENRYQ

2:03 PM ET

March 8, 2010

another viewpoint

It will be impossible to reach a peaceful settlement that lasts until both sides see the humanity in each. Can either side claim that the goal of parents whether from Israel or Palestine, is to wish for the best life possible for their children? If you doubt this statement sit down and talk with parents in Israel and Palestine and I think you will find their thinking is closer than most think. Guns, bombs, angry words have not produced a life that many people in other parts of the world over are trying to copy.

 

IDI

4:50 PM ET

March 8, 2010

Tzipster

I'd say that The Tzipster seems foreign to the region.

 

DRMMRABIE

5:21 PM ET

March 8, 2010

peace between Israelis and Palestinians

If the Israeli leaders are willing to negotiate on the basis of the United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338 which stipulate that Israel must withdraw completely from all territories captured by the Israelis in 1967 including the West bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. Then I believe it is possible to reach a peaceful settlement that lasts regardless of the few extremists on both sides; I believe they will be able to forget and forgive. Parents whether from Israel or Palestine seek peace and tranquility to provide the best life possible for their children and grand children; Guns, bombs, and killings produce only pain and suffering on both sides.

 

YESHOL

6:29 AM ET

March 28, 2010

242

DRMMRABIE probably is not aware of the long discussions regarding the formulation of 242, and unaware of what 242 really says.
Britain argued for days with Russia: Russia wanted the resolution to say what DRMMRABIE thinks it says. Britain refused to demand that Israel withdraw from ALL the territories. In the final formulation the word ALL was dropped, and the resolution says that Israel will withdraw from Territories. How many, how much was intentionally left out, for more than one rerason.

One reason was, that it would have been totally immoral to make such a demand: Israel's very existence was threatened from the 1949 borders, and act after act of casus belli was committed by the Arabs until 1967.

Obviously, return to the 1949 borders would mean that the aggression of the Arabs would go unpunished, and Israel would continue to face threats to her existence.

It would suit DRMMRABIE to learn the facts.

Israel may not "forget". It is perfectly clear that if Israel is vulnerable militarily, Israel will be attacked. Arabs are teaching their children that Allah wants them to kill all Jews.
See http://palwatch.org/site/modules/videos/popup/video.aspx?doc_id=446

Ignoring this would be similar to ignoring Hitler's Mein Kampf. Jews did ignore it: it was not "politically correct" to call attention to the threats of Hitler. Jews paid by being victims of the holocaust for being "politically correct".

NEVER AGAIN.

 

VARDI

9:05 PM ET

March 8, 2010

Good cup, Bad cup

Netanyahu and Livny are playing Good Cup, Bad Cup with the West.
Both refuse to consider a Palestinian state in the West Bank. (To be fair, all prime ministers with the possible exception of Rabin refused).
The Green Line is long forgotten. There is a consensus that the Wall is the new potential border. It is impossible to evacuate people living West of the Wall. (One reason is that the majority of young officers are coming from the settlers families.)
The Palestinians are extremely unlikely to accept the Wall as a border.
Why deceive the West? Israel realizes that it has an important strategic position and it intends to milk oil-hungry US and for that it needs to pretend to want peace. In fact, Israel does want peace, but would not consider a viable Palestinian state as a neighbor.

 

PAX R.

1:02 PM ET

March 9, 2010

Peace

How refreshing to read intelligent, thoughtful commentary from readers on both sides when discussing a topic that tends to draw such emotion. Civil dialogue and respectful debate pave the road to the future. I invite you to join me at Pax101 on Facebook or follow @Pax_101 and help change the discourse. It's an experiment in Israeli-Palestinian peace-brokerage and social media. Let’s keep peaceful debate and conflict resolution going!

 

PHILIP K.

9:32 PM ET

March 9, 2010

About Mandatory School assignments....

Since "The Protocols Of The Elders of Zion" and "The Hamas Charter" are read to Palestinian children in their schools, it might be prudent for Israeli teachers to be and remain vigilant. The "protocols" are a known historical fiction. "The Hamas Charter is no joke. Israeli teachers and their students, as well as all good citizens of the world, should be attentive to the contents of this document - authored by duly elected representatives of the Palestinian people. But it is especially the Israeli students - the third generation post holocaust generation, who need be especially aware of this vitriolic anti-semitism and thus remain especially vigilant. For it is they who are and will be on the front lines.