March 26, 2014 | Quote
U.S. Scrambles as Prisoner Release, Jewish State Issue Threaten to Sink Talks
The Obama administration is scrambling to salvage Israeli-Palestinian talks threatened by disputes over core identity issues for each side: recognition of the state’s Jewish character for Israel, the release of prisoners for the Palestinians.
Martin Indyk, the peace process envoy for U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, is in Israel and the West Bank this week attempting to salvage the talks ahead of Saturday’s deadline for a fourth release of Palestinian prisoners by Israel.
“We are at a pivotal time in the negotiations, and we are encouraging the leaders to make the smart, hard and historic choices needed to achieve a lasting peace,” a U.S. official told JTA on Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the talks.
…
Jonathan Schanzer, a vice president of the Foundation for Defense for Democracies, said the real surprise was that the talks had lasted this long. Schanzer, whose recent book, “State of Failure,” offered a sharp critique of the Palestinian Authority, counted himself among the initial skeptics.
“It has been moving forward better than anyone expected,” he said. “Those who pooh-poohed it have been wrong. But that doesn’t mean that it was a success. It just hasn’t failed.”