Sharon: Not An Enigma
Many observers continue to deem Prime Minister Sharon an enigma, believing it to be unclear what his plan is.
In fact, Sharon's plan seems to be quite clear, at least to me.
The prime minister has apparently concluded that Israel's demographic problems are such that Israel must relinquish most of Judea and Samaria even in the absence of a full peace agreement. While Sharon probably would not agree to the concessions offered by former PM Barak, he would give up much more than 40-50% of the disputed territories, as some believe his limit to be.
Sharon is instead seeking an agreement, as part of Stage 2 of the road map, in which a limited Palestinian state is formed on about two-thirds of Judea and Samaria, and all or almost all of Gaza. Some settlements would be dismantled under this agreement, which would not result in an end to the conflict, but, Sharon hopes, would limit the conflict to a border dispute over Jerusalem and the remaining 30-35% of Judea and Samaria. Areas that would remain under Israeli control following the interim agreement would include all of Jerusalem, the Jordan Valley, Maaleh Adumim, Givat Zeev, most of Western Samaria (including, in particular, Ariel), and most (but not all) of Gush Etzion.
posted on 7/07/2003
