Friday, November 12, 2010

Bland? Not At All

The NYTimes characterizes the statement Hillary Clinton issued yesterday so:

a blandly worded joint statement issued afterward made clear that there had been no breakthroughs.

Really?

Try this

...While the statement issued after the meeting recapitulated familiar positions, analysts zeroed in on two passages...In the second, she spoke of an agreement that “reconciles the Palestinian goal of an independent and viable state, based on the 1967 lines, with agreed swaps, and the Israeli goal of a Jewish state with secure and recognized borders that reflect subsequent developments and meet Israeli security requirements.”

Does that "based on" mean Israel must withdraw fully to the pre-1967 lines or does it mean that areas of Judea and Samaria will be retained?

Why are they smiling?

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