James Barcia: “the people of Israel have endured a history of military threat that would have crushed a lesser nation. They have fought…”

“the people of Israel have endured a history of military threat that would have crushed a lesser nation. They have fought for and earned freedom and the right to be recognized as a nation of resolve. The Palestinian people have also faced many challenges and difficult trials. The peace process has been as much a blessing to them as it has to the people of Israel. It was a major success for our Nation to have helped facilitate peace negotiations between the leaders of Israel and Palestine, and it is a delicate balance to maintain this most promising dialog. But recent reports that Yasser Arafat has invited diplomatic officials from several nations, including the United States, to criticize Israel for building in Jerusalem and redeployment from the West Bank can be a major impediment to the peace process. I am deeply troubled by the fact that Israel has not been invited to participate in this meeting. I am even more troubled that the United States has apparently agreed to attend what would appear to be a one-sided meeting. Just as we cannot hear the sound of one hand clapping, we cannot expect to resolve conflicts by hearing only one side of the story. Over the years our Nation, under several Presidents, has invested too much to blemish the wonderful image that we all have of Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin shaking hands in front of President Clinton at the White House, signifying that an era of mutual respect was replacing one of hostility.”