Palestine issue poses important challenge for Delhi
After that visit, Abbas met the German president in Ramallah and then went to Moscow, where he received strong support. Abbas said: “It is impossible to solve the Palestinian issue without Russia’s meaningful participation in the peace process.” Putin backs the two-state solution: “The peaceful coexistence of the two states — Palestine and Israel — is an indispensable condition to ensure genuine security and stability in this region.”
In Delhi, in an obvious tribute to India’s diplomatic stature, Abbas insisted on an Indian role in “the upcoming peace efforts.” Abbas’ remarks, as those of Prime Minister Modi expressing fulsome support for an independent state of Palestine, affirm that India has successfully dehyphenated its ties with Israel and Palestine.
Contrary to the apprehensions of many Middle East watchers, even as India has expanded its ties with Israel in the fields of defense and technology, it has steadfastly backed the Palestine cause, and specifically the two-state solution, and provided massive development assistance to the Palestine Authority.
The Palestine issue is thus an important challenge for Delhi: India has the closest of relations with both Israel and Palestine, while having an abiding interest in Middle Eastern stability.
The Indian initiative to promote the revival of the peace process can be founded on the Arab Peace Initiative that was first proposed by the late King Abdullah in 2002 and accepted as an “Arab” plan that same year. It calls for the Israeli vacation of territories occupied in 1967, with some adjustments, and a just settlement of the refugee question, in return for full political and economic ties with its Arab neighbors.
Several moderate Israeli and Western leaders agree that this proposal can be the basis for lasting peace in the region. Even the generally obdurate Hamas, which has traditionally questioned Israel’s right to exist, has seen the need for some moderation in its stance: It has recently amended its charter to accept a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders.
While there is still some confusion in Hamas ranks about what is on offer, there is no doubt that its new leadership recognizes the need for compromise on its entrenched positions so that Arabs and Israelis can live side by side peacefully.
An Indian initiative to pursue this plan in a well thought-out diplomatic initiative with the Israeli leaders when Modi engages with them in July would be the best outcome of his robust engagement with the Middle East in his three-years as India’s prime minister.