By
Uri Avnery, 4.3.06
IF
YOU want
to understand the policy of a country, look at the map!" advised Napoleon.
What he meant was: Regimes come and go, rulers rise and fall, ideologies
flourish and wither, but geography stands forever. It's geography that decides
the basic interest of every state.
Vladimir
Putin, heir of Czars and Commissars, looked at the map. Looked and picked up
the telephone to invite the Hamas leaders.
A
HUNDRED years
ago, the whole expanse from India to Turkey was a battlefield between Russia
and the main Western power at that time - the British Empire. Adventurers,
spies, diplomats and plotters of all stripes roamed the area. This contest was
known as "The Great Game".
In
time, the actors changed. The Bolsheviks took the place of the Czars, the
American Empire succeeded the British. But the Great Game went on.
When
the Soviet Union collapsed, it seemed as if the game had come to an end.
Russian influence disappeared from the region. The Soviet empire dissolved, and
what remained was too weak, too poor, to take part in the game. It had no
jetons.
And
now, with one stroke, Putin has changed everything. Inviting Hamas to Moscow
was a gambit of genius: it didn't cost anything, and it put Russia back on the map
of the Middle East. While the whole world was still puzzled and confused by the
Hamas victory, Putin used the sharp scalpel of unemotional logic and made the
first move of a new game.
This
way, the new Czar of all the Russias exploited the weakness of his rivals.
President Bush has got himself into a dismal position. When all the other
pretexts for his bloody Iraqi adventure had evaporated into thin air, he raised
a new flag: democracy in the Middle East. He imposed new elections on the
Palestinians. In these elections, the most democratic one could imagine, the
winner was - alas! - Hamas.
What
to do? To declare that democratic elections are good only if they deliver the
outcome we desire? To boycott the Palestinian authority, now the "Second
Democracy in the Middle East"? To starve the Palestinians until they elect
the "right" leadership?
Bush
could, of course, recognize the elected Hamas government. But how could he do
that? After all, the United States has put Hamas on its list of terrorist
organizations - not only its military wing, but the whole movement, including
the kindergartens and mosques. Now they are caught up in the Clash of
Civilizations, the apocalyptic battle between the West and Islam.
Nothing
to be done. America is a chess-player caught in a position of stalemate -
unable to make any move at all.
Europe
is in a similar situation. Like a mental patient in a straitjacket, it cannot
move its arms. It put on this jacket itself. Under American and Israeli
pressure, it put Hamas on its terror list, and thus condemned itself to total
impotence in the new situation.
Putin
does not laugh often. But now, perhaps, he may be permitting himself a thin
smile.
THE
PALESTINIANS,
too, are quite confused. In these elections they surprised themselves, and, no
less, Hamas.
Inside
Fatah, there are contradictory views about what to do. The good of the
Palestinian people clearly demands a wide coalition, which would include all
parties, in order to overcome the crisis and prevent a boycott of the Palestinian
Authority by the world. But the narrow party interest of Fatah says otherwise:
Let's compel Hamas to govern alone. It will break its head, the world will
boycott it. After a year or two, the Palestinian public will return Fatah to
power.
That's
Realpolitik, but dangerous. During the one or two years, the Israeli government
will enlarge the settlements, build more and more of the Wall, fix new borders,
annex the Jordan valley - the sky is the limit. The reaction of the Palestinian
public may be quite different from what the Fatah people imagine.
Hamas
is also baffled. It knows full well that the elections were less an ideological
breakthrough than a protest vote - more against Fatah than for Hamas. Now Hamas
must gain the heart of the Palestinian people, and the people want an end to
the occupation, and peace at last.
Hamas
does not want the world to ostracize the Palestinian Authority and starve the
population. But it cannot change its skin on the morrow of its victory. What
will the Palestinians say if it suddenly declares that it is ready to recognize
Israel's right to exist, to disarm and annul its charter? That it has sold its
soul to Satan in order to enjoy the comforts of power? That it is as corrupt as
Fatah?
If
Israel and America wanted to lead Hamas towards a path of peace, they would
ease its way towards the desired change. They could find mechanisms for the
transfer of the money due to the Palestinians. They could be satisfied with an
announcement that the new government is based on the Oslo Agreement (which
includes the recognition of Israel) without demanding that Hamas humiliate
itself in public. They could agree to a Hudna (armistice) for the transition
period and put an end to all violent action by both sides. Hamas can be
disarmed by including its fighters in the official security forces. And, of
course, and most importantly - prisoners could be released.
But
the present Israeli government shows no interest in making it easy for Hamas.
And if the Israeli government is not interested, what American politician, if
not bent on suicide, can say otherwise?
IN
ISRAEL,
the Hamas victory has not given rise to sorrow and lamentations. On the
contrary. Israeli leaders could hardly hold back from dancing in the streets.
At
long last, it has become perfectly clear that "There is No One to Talk
With". If Yasser Arafat was no partner, and if Mahmoud Abbas was no
partner, Hamas is the mother of all no-partners. Nobody can rebuke us for going
on with "targeted killings", destroying the Palestinian economy,
building walls, breaking up the West Bank territory, cutting off the Jordan
valley and generally doing whatever we feel like. And if, with God's help,
Palestinian terrorism starts again, we can say to everybody: "We told you
so!"
But
in Israel, too, there is a lot of confusion. Under American pressure, Ehud
Olmert was compelled to transfer to the Palestinian at least once the revenues
that Israel has collected on their behalf. He was immediately attacked for
"surrendering" to Hamas. Even this small act of surrendering stolen
money has caused a political storm. The Israeli election, due to take place in
24 days, casts its shadow on everything.
Now
comes Putin's daring step. He makes it easier for the Hamas leadership to
moderate its stance - if it is ready to join the political game. He also makes
it easier for the government of Israel - if the government of Israel wants
dialogue and peace. And, above all else, he is announcing that Russia is back
in the Great Game.