Friday, April 4, 2003 | 6 a.m.
"YOU CAN STAY and talk with us about cattle and farming," my host told me. We had been sitting in Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's living room talking for about 30 minutes when some nearby farmers traipsed in for their scheduled weekend meeting. Along with them was an old German shepherd that came over and gave me a big slurp.
Sharon's love of the land and its people was obvious the first time we met 12 years ago, and that inner fire continues to burn brightly. I don't believe he knows how to hide his feelings on any subject and he is still a farmer at heart.
Friday morning I left Tel Aviv with Gen. Aharon Davidi (ret.) early to make the 70-mile drive south to the Sharon farm. I grasped the opportunity for an interview with Israel's top man because of the confusion in the press and public about the road map for Middle East peace jointly sponsored by the United States, European Union, United Nations and Russia. This group is commonly referred to as the Quartet and its agenda is being pushed by Great Britain Prime Minister Tony Blair because of the heat he is receiving at home and in the European Union.
President George W. Bush has refused to release the "final" draft of the road map until war in Iraq ends. Sharon has agreed with this approach because the "timetable will depend on performance" and not a clock. Nevertheless, the European Union and United Nations are urging its release as soon as possible. Neither organization has shown any love for Israel and have gone out of their way to promote Palestinian causes.
One of Israel's better political analysts, Herb Keinon, writing in the Jerusalem Post newspaper, calls the road map for Palestinian reformation -- to be completed by May -- as being "impossible." Another hang-up in the road map is the Israeli demand that the Palestinian reform takes place and terrorism ends before further progress can be expected. Then, and only then, will Israel follow demands that require it to "halt settlement construction, dismantle settlement outposts and withdraw to pre-September 2000 lines," according to Keinon.
Another issue Keinon refers to is a problem in wording that calls for compensation of the Palestinian refugees of 1948 or their right to return to what might have been their place of residence before they abandoned it. This idea has been brought to my attention by dozens of Israelis from all walks of life. In anger, one man told me, "They never want to talk about the more than 800,000 Jews forced from their homes in Arab lands, with 600,000 of them finding refuge in Israel." I suggest the Quartet take time to read, "The Forgotten Millions," edited by Malka Hillel Shulewitz, which tells of the Jews and Christians forced by the Arab governments to flee. Thousands were given only one day to leave after being stripped of their money and worldly possessions.
Sharon doesn't want to discuss in depth the problems he must also see in the drafts of the road map. He does make clear that the security of his small democratic nation isn't on any table for negotiations. He also "demands that Israel be recognized as a Jewish state."
The problem today, tomorrow and in the future is the agenda of terrorists from both within and without. This isn't just an Israeli problem but a world problem, Sharon reminded me. As an American, I understood exactly what he meant and came away knowing he is very aware of the tough geographic neighborhood he inhabits.
There are several reasons to believe that Iran's weaponry and support of terrorists may pose a bigger threat than Saddam did.
Driving away from the farm, the fields made green by heavy rains kept my eyes and mind busy. What a great place to farm and make a living. Then I noticed we were passing near a town that not long ago received rockets fired from Gaza. Israel is fortunate that a local farmer has the skill, heart and strength to dedicate his life to public service."
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