Ever since the Palestinian-Israeli peace talks began this summer, Palestinian negotiators have found themselves without one of their strongest negotiating weapons: the ability to walk out of the talks.
The current peace talks began without the Israelis agreeing on two basic conditions: the suspension of settlement building in Palestinian areas and a clear reference point for the talks. While these conditions were not directly accepted by Israel, the United States guaranteed that the 1967 borders would be the basic reference point of the border discussions. On the settlements, the Palestinians were assured by the United States that Israel would not build any outside the settlement blocks that Israelis hope would be annexed to Israel.
