Statement by Ambassador Dan Gillerman
Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations
Agenda Item 36: The situation in the Middle East

59th Session of the General Assembly
New York, 30 November 2004

Mr. President,

Martin Luther King once said that "There comes a time that people get tired."

For the peoples of the Middle East, Mr. President - all the peoples of the Middle East - that time has come. The people of the Middle East are tired, tired of bloodshed and tired of violence. They are tired of terrorism, tired of despotism, and tired of hatred. They are tired of corrupt leaderships that do nothing to foster harmony, yet do all that they can to stifle it. They are tired of the adoption of anachronistic and one-sided resolutions that are as disconnected from reality as they are from the noble ideals upon which this organization was founded.

Today we hear voices of reason and voices of rejection, voices that call for progress and voices brimming with fatal stagnation - as we heard only yesterday in this hall, when the Palestinian voice proved once again that not only do they never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity, but that, sadly, as far as the Palestinians are concerned, there is no present and no future. Only the past happening over and over and over again. Hopefully, this is a lone voice, as I truly believe most Palestinians want, and deserve, better. But there are voices that we fail to hear. The voices of people throughout the Middle East looking for responsible leadership, not repressive rule. The voices of those looking for the opportunities provided by democracy and respect for human rights, and ready to live in peace with their neighbors. As we consider the Situation in the Middle East, we must allow these voices to echo throughout this chamber and seek ways to empower the moderates throughout the region who want to realize this vision.

Mr. President,

Israel believes that it is in dialogue that hope is born, and it is through dialogue that progress is achieved. Israel has always understood that every nation has rights and every nation has responsibilities. We recognize the needs of all our neighbors to live in peace and prosperity. From its earliest days as a modern State, Israel has offered an outstretched hand to those genuinely committed to peace, and we have proved ready to follow the path of mutual recognition and mutual compromise.

These principles have driven the success we have had in establishing peace treaties with two of our neighbors, Egypt and Jordan. These treaties arose through the drive and strength of courageous Arab leaders - profiles in valor - and provide examples of the positive results that can be attained if Israel's goodwill is received in kind by those to whom it is offered. Through creating trust and advocating peace, these Arab leaders, President Sadat of Egypt and King Hussein of Jordan, found in their Israeli counterparts brave partners that worked alongside them to create a new reality.

In the 1990s these important treaties led to the improvement of our relations with other States in the region. They provided the crucial momentum necessary for bilateral peace negotiations between Israel and Syria, as well as for the signing of Israel-Palestinian interim agreements intended to introduce a new era of peace to the Middle East. The result of all of this was a dramatic improvement of economic and social conditions for all inhabitants of the area.

Another result was a demonstration that it is through discourse and negotiated settlement that peace lies, not through anachronistic and one-sided resolutions. Peace will be fashioned in Ramallah and Jerusalem, not in New York and Geneva. Israel knows it has obligations to fulfill, and we will not shy away from them. But we are not alone in this regard. Every peace process in the region has succeeded only when it recognized the rights and responsibilities of both sides, and the need for face-to-face dialogue, and mutual implementation, to achieve real results on the ground. While we were compelled to advance the disengagement plan in the absence of a Palestinian partner for peace, we are hopeful that it can be coordinated, and that - as the Quartet has recognized - it can jumpstart the negotiating process, which is the only path to lasting peace.

It is important that the international community, and this Assembly, support those working towards a peaceful resolution, by empowering the peace-makers and disempowering the extremists. Every step taken by the international community must be judged by whether it pushes the parties closer to the negotiating table and to the mutual implementation of obligations, or pushes them further apart. Too often the resolutions and discourse adopted in this Hall have failed this test, promoting acrimony and divisiveness instead of constructive dialogue. In the spirit of reform and revitalization, and for the sake of peace, it is time to change this counter-productive dynamic. Unfortunately, the resolutions presented to the assembly on the agenda items discussed in the last two days follow this tired and harmful pattern. Accordingly, Israel will be compelled to vote against them.

Mr. President,

The Middle East was once a global center of innovation and progress, a fountain of civility and wisdom. Peoples of the region are rightfully proud of this past, and they have a right to be hopeful for their future as well. In too many states in the region, however, the people have suffered under dictatorial rule for too long, without the rights to a free press, an independent judiciary, and respect for the rule of law. The hopes for peace, stability and prosperity in the Middle East cannot be divorced from these facts. Democratic reform, the teaching of tolerance and co-existence, and respect for human rights are fundamental building blocks to a positive and hopeful future. And they are indispensable stepping stones on the road to true peace.

Governments that glorify murder as martyrdom, cannot at the same time foster peace and good-neighborliness. Governments that tolerate religious extremism at home will not fight for peace abroad. If we encourage a culture of democracy and mutual tolerance, in a way that is respectful of local cultures and religious traditions, we sow the seeds of peace. If we reject the tactics of terrorism, and the ideology of hate that feeds it, we create the conditions for co-existence and prosperity. The people of the Middle East, and the Palestinians more than anybody, know that democratic reform is central to the hopes and positive future of the region.

Mr. President,

The obstacles on the road to a peaceful and prosperous Middle East are many. Israel recognizes that peace is made with one's adversaries, not with one's friends. But peace can only be made with adversaries who want to make peace with you.

Terrorist organizations like Hizbullah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad are, by definition, opposed to peaceful co-existence, and determined to prevent reconciliation. Their State sponsors, like Iran and Syria, continue to tolerate and actively support this terrorist activity in violation of their most basic legal and moral obligations, including security council resolutions, such as 1373 and 1566. While responsible States have mobilized to combat the plague of terrorism, these State supporters of terror have systematically and determinedly worked to turn the region's worst fears into reality.

As a window of opportunity is opening in the Middle East, organizations such as Hizbullah are working hard to shutter it. Hizbullah is a terrorist network with tentacles extending throughout our region, and a record of terrorist activity, including airplane hijackings and embassy bombings, throughout the world. As Lebanon continues to flout its basic obligations to prevent cross-border attacks, and as Syria continues to exert its control over that country, in violation of security council resolutions, Hizbullah becomes a more potent force. It funds and coordinates terror against Israel, from Lebanon, as well as from within the West Bank and Gaza. Hizbullah, with the continued support of Iran and Syria, is today intensifying its efforts to ensure that acts of terror kill the fragile hopes for peace, and undermine the emergence of a stable and responsible Palestinian leadership. What the world sees as an opportunity, it sees as a threat. Just last week, Hizbullah operatives directed an unsuccessful attempt to bring explosives into Israel, and the efforts to execute acts of terror continue with urgency.

In a revealing interview given recently by Nawaf Musawi, of the Hizbullah's so-called political leadership, the destructive intentions of this terrorist organizations were made painfully clear. Like other Hizbullah leaders, he called for the continuation of Palestinian violence and terror, and pledged Hizbullah's ongoing support for such activity.

Behind Hizbullah lies the support of Iran, a regime that openly calls for Israel's destruction, which is engaged in further exacerbating the dangers in the Middle East through its nuclear program. This does not present a local or regional threat, but a global threat with existential repercussions for many of the States represented here. Iran's malignant nuclear intentions are a danger, not only to Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, but also to London, Paris, Berlin, and southern Russia. Everyone present should beware of the potential implications of ignoring the nexus between terror and tyranny, between terror groups, state sponsors, and weapons of mass destruction.

If the international community is serious about taking advantage of the opportunity before us, it is not enough to encourage and empower those committed to peace. We must also confront those opposed to it. We must show the same urgency and determination in combating these forces as they do in pursuing their hateful agenda. Without that, moderates in the region - be they in Iraq, the West Bank or elsewhere in the Middle East - have no chance to succeed. Without that we will record yet another missed opportunity on the road to peace. This is no time for complacency or false equivalencies. Treating those engaged in terror and those determined, under difficult conditions, to respond to it as though they were moral equals is not amoral - it is immoral. We remain hopeful that the circle of peace in the Middle East can be widened, and Israel is, as always, ready to reach a genuine and lasting peace with all its neighbors.

At the same time, the readiness of every State of the Middle East to embark on a path of reform and peace, must be judged by their actions, not by their words. We have all had our fill of false promises and publicity stunts. If we are genuine in our desire for peace, the international community and the United Nations must make clear to the enemies of peace that their destructive behavior will no longer be tolerated. That you cannot sponsor peace and sponsor terrorism at the same time.

Mr. President,

We are at a moment in time when we have an opportunity to affect real change. For today, to quote Martin Luther King once more, "We ain't where we wanna be, we ain't where we gonna be, but thank God, we ain't where we were."

The whole Middle East stands at a point in history suffused with frenetic changes. We must harness the promise of improvement arrayed before us, and along with the international community, stand firmly against those who would resist it. All States and peoples in the Middle East deserve better, and Israel is committed to achieving it in partnership with its neighbors in the region.

We call on all our neighbors to accept our goodwill and return it in kind. All of us are tired of pain and violence, and it is high time that the Middle East, known in history as the "cradle of civilization," reclaimed that legacy.

Thank you, Mr. President.