Professor Shibley Telhami's latest Foreign Affairs article, co-authored with Professor Marc Lynch, on "The Promise and Peril of Recognizing Palestine: Can a Two-State Solution Still Emerge From a One-State Reality?"

The article considers the momentum building in the international community, especially Europe, toward expansion of the recognition of a Palestinian State as a way of energizing the conversation about a two-state solution in Israel/Palestine, even as a one-state reality appears more entrenched than ever and Israel's assault in Gaza continues unabated. This conversation is likely to strengthen in the coming weeks, as "Recognition has become an attractive option as anger at the horrors of Gaza has built pressure for some form of meaningful international action." We thus address the advantages of recognition such as anchoring the conversation in international law and putting the policies of European countries on a different trajectory. But we also consider why such a move would be insufficient in and of itself: "If formal recognition becomes a substitute for defending the primacy of international law and addressing the core realities of Palestinian suffering, it would be at best a hollow gesture - and at worst an epic misallocation of scarce international political capital." To be more than an empty gesture, recognition must be accompanied with steps for "concrete changes on the ground to match Palestine's new legal status."

Ultimately the role of the United States will remain central and thus we discuss the likely motivations and behavior of the Trump administration moving forward. You can find the full article here and a pdf version here.