Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Syrian President Bashar Assad (AP)
The Mideast axis of evil summit attended by Iran, Syria, Hizbullah and Hamas held immediately after President Bush called for an international conference to advance Israeli-Palestinian peace, once again demonstrates the extent of which the problems of the area are intertwined.
The U.S. has always known this, but has for years conducted itself according to erroneous priorities. It failed to understand that if there is an Achilles heel in the Mideast problem, it can be found in the Palestinian question and not in the fight against terror, Iraq or in enforcing democracy in Arab states. Only after six years of stubbornness, Bush admitted that "Iraq was not the only key axis in the Middle East."
Bush’s initiative is his last effort to salvage America’s status in the region, after the United States has found itself on the defensive on all fronts… Bush has even come as close as possible to former President Clinton’s peace plan when he announced that "past borders, current realities and agreed changes" will define the solution… On the other hand, Bush’s strategy is consistently lacking on several fundamental points. Access the full article>>
