WASHINGTON — Israeli President Shimon Peres once said that peace could be likened to a horse galloping under a window. A true leader is one who has the courage to jump out the window and hop on the horse’s back and gallop with it. This is a one-time, one-off chance, Peres said. If you hop on history’s back, you get to ride with it. If you stay in the room, you are left behind.
At some point over the next few months, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) will have to decide whether they are going to jump out the window and hop on the back of the galloping horse or whether they will remain alone in the room. The horse that will swiftly gallop under their window has a name: John Kerry. The US secretary of state's speech on Dec. 7 at the Saban Forum made it clear — for those who have yet to understand — that he is the driving force behind the current and intense round of talks in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Although Kerry’s speech followed the interview by American-Israeli billionaire Haim Saban with US President Barack Obama, and although the latter was armed with his usual engaging charm, it was Kerry, to my mind, who stole the thunder.
Passionate, persuasive, exuding power and conviction, he talked like an evangelist speaking to his flock about redemption. It was not a speech, it was a sermon. He reminded Israelis in the auditorium of Peres’ heyday, with his “new Middle East,” which ultimately went up in smoke in the wake of terrorist attacks, intifadas and revolutions.
After Kerry’s speech, it was already evident that this whole thing — the negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians — is here to stay. Kerry has no intention of folding or despairing. Demonstrating relentless energy, extraordinary resolve and inspiring creativity, he seems at the present time to be the only one who takes the Israeli-Palestinian issue, the ongoing Israeli occupation and the campaign to delegitimize Israel the hardest. Of all people, it is none other than he — the US secretary of state.
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