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O 141506Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3811
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TEL AVIV 002255 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL KWBG IS
SUBJECT: GENEVA INITIATIVE ANNEXES SEEK TO RESTORE VISION 
OF PEACE 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary.  Since releasing its annexes last month, 
the Geneva Initiative (GI) is continuing to look for ways to 
promote its model peace agreement, the Geneva Accord, and to 
generally support peace efforts.  Representatives of the 
Geneva Initiative told PolOff on October 6 that while they 
still maintain hope that the Geneva Accords can be accepted 
by the GOI and PA with only minor modifications, the main 
purpose of the Geneva Accord is to show that it is possible 
to reach a compromise between Israeli and Palestinian 
positions. They said the recently released annexes could 
serve as a resource for negotiators and, hopefully, as 
something concrete that could help restore a vision of peace 
for Israelis who have lost hope in the peace process.  They 
noted that the Geneva Initiative has negative associations 
for many Israelis because of its strong identifications with 
the Israeli left, as well as many of the people who failed to 
reach an agreement at Camp David.  However, they assert that 
almost every poll shows a majority of Israelis support the 
general parameters of the peace agreement.  They added that 
while their side is made up of former officials, the Israelis 
should note that the Palestinian team is made up of current 
political officials, including PLO Executive Committee 
Secretary General Yasser Abbed Rabo, albeit in their private 
capacity.  End summary. 
 
Background 
---------- 
 
¶2.  (U) The Geneva Accord is a track II model peace agreement 
signed in 2003 between former Israeli peace negotiators, most 
notably Yossi Beilin, and PLO representatives acting in their 
private capacity, led by PLO Executive Committee Secretary 
General Yasser Abed Rabbo.  The annexes, officially released 
in a ceremony with President Shimon Peres on September 15, 
2009, are a series of detailed technical agreements that were 
referenced in the original Geneva Accord but not previously 
completed.  The annexes cover issues such as an international 
monitoring group, a multinational peacekeeping force, water, 
the environment, border arrangements, and arrangements for 
the Old City of Jerusalem as a jointly held area with a 
special regime for the holy sites.  The annex on refugees has 
yet to be completed. 
 
Israelis Experts Write the Annexes, Palestinians Approve 
--------------------------------------------- ----------- 
 
¶3.  (U) There are 13 annexes that cover: the role of the 
international community, refugees, security, arrangements for 
Jerusalem, border crossings, Israeli corridors through the 
West Bank, Palestinian corridors between the West Bank and 
Gaza, water, the environment, and the economy.  The final 
annex restates the Arab Peace Initiative (API) and says the 
Geneva Accord final status agreement fulfills Israel's 
responsibilities under the API with regards to the 
Palestinians, although it notes full API implementation 
depends on agreements with the Lebanese and Syrians as well. 
While the 2003 Geneva Accord laid out all the principles for 
a final status agreement, the annexes go into considerable 
detail.  This includes the specific mandate and exact 
equipment for international forces, the armaments allowed for 
security services in the non-militarized Palestinian State, 
the physical infrastructure for the Gaza link, and diagrams 
showing the layout and location of border crossings in 
Jerusalem.  The full, 427-page annex document, as well as a 
summary document, can be found at 
www.geneva-accord.org/mainmenu/the-annexes. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) On October 6, PolOff discussed the annex project 
with Michal Radoshitzky, Director of Foreign Relations for 
Geneva Initiative (Israel) and Yuval Benziman, Coordinator 
for the Annex Project for Geneva Initiative (Israel).  They 
explained that, in general, the annexes were drafted by 
Israeli academics and experts, approved by the Geneva 
Initiative (Israel) and then submitted to the Palestinian 
side for modifications and approval.  The GI sought out the 
best experts possible, whether or not those experts supported 
the Geneva Initiative, in order to come up with solutions 
that they consider to be realistic and implementable.  While 
Israelis did most of the drafting, they noted that the water 
and environment annexes were co-drafted with the 
Palestinians, and that the relevant PA agencies informally 
approved both those annexes before they were released. 
 
PLO Officials Support GI "in their private capacity" 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Radoshitzky and Benziman pointed out the asymmetry 
in the make-up of the Geneva Initiative, as the Israeli side 
is made up of academics and former officials, while most of 
the Palestinians are either current officials or closely tied 
 
TEL AVIV 00002255  002 OF 003 
 
 
to Fatah, while acting in their "private capacity." 
Therefore, while the Israelis take most of the working-level 
burden, the finally approved results are more likely 
acceptable to the PA than to the GOI.  In addition to the 
water and environment annexes, which were cleared by the 
relevant PA agencies, they said they were aware of the 
official Palestinian negotiating team getting a copy of the 
annexes in advance.  While they are not sure if PA President 
Mahmoud Abbas was aware of the content of the annexes, they 
noted that GI Co-Architect Yasser Abed Rabbo is considered 
close to Abbas.  The GI had planned a ceremony to officially 
present the annexes to Abbas following the Peres ceremony, 
but they think that the event is now on hold given the 
current political climate. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) On the other hand, Israeli officials, they 
lamented, tend to stay away from the Geneva Initiative, as it 
can be politically controversial in Israel.  Radoshitzky 
added that they have done several polls that showed broad 
support among Israeli Jews for Geneva Initiative parameters, 
but when the poll question specifically mentions the Geneva 
Initiative, support plummets.  President Peres officially 
accepted a copy of the annexes on September 15 from Geneva 
Initiative Co-Architect Yossi Beilin, but Peres has not 
officially endorsed the effort, and cannot as President. 
They pointed out, however, that the ceremony is a big 
contrast to the release of the original Geneva Accord in 2003 
when, they said, they were called traitors by some Israelis. 
Now, the GI representatives pointed out, even the 
spokesperson of the Israeli Foreign Ministry publicly called 
the annexes a useful effort. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) In a separate conversation on October 8, Geneva 
Initiative (Israel) Chairman Boaz Karni told PolOff that as 
President, Peres cannot be involved in any track II peace 
efforts, but said that Peres speaks often with Beilin, who 
was a long-time Peres protege.  Karni added that National 
Security Advisor Uzi Arad also personally requested a copy of 
the annexes, although he is certain that Arad does not 
support the Geneva Initiative in general. 
 
Next Steps 
---------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU) The GI plans to continue its public efforts to 
support their accords, and peace in general.  They are 
currently translating the annexes, drafted in English, into 
Hebrew and will send copies to every Israeli MK.  On 
September 1, the GI presented the annexes to the European 
Union in Brussels, adding that the Swiss Foreign Minister has 
been promoting the GI with her counterparts throughout Europe 
and beyond.  The GI also presented a copy of the annexes to 
Egyptian Foreign Minister Aboul Gheit, who publicly called it 
"an important document that can form a good and useful base 
of reference."  Benzimen added that although published, the 
annexes are a fluid document, and the GI will make revisions 
as needed based on feedback. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) The GI is also planning a billboard and print 
campaign in the near future to support peace efforts (Note: 
the GI launched a similar high-profile campaign following the 
Annapolis Conference.  End Note).  According to Radoshitzky, 
the organization originally intended to launch the campaign 
after the trilateral summit in New York to support renewed 
negotiations, but have now decided to hold off and revamp the 
campaign to fit the current circumstances. 
 
¶10.  (SBU) The GI is also continuing its other outreach 
efforts, which include holding conferences of experts, 
conducting West Bank barrier tours, and doing community 
outreach.  Radoshitzky said that originally the GI, which is 
not a grass-roots organization, only wanted to focus on the 
details of the agreement to provide a recipe for a final 
status arrangement.  However, the GI concluded that the 
biggest obstacle to peace was not the details of an 
agreement, for which there was generally broad support, but a 
lack of faith in the process, which normally manifests itself 
among Israelis as the idea that there is no Palestinian 
partner capable of delivering peace.  Their community 
outreach program attempts to address this perception. 
 
¶11.  The two main efforts for the community outreach have 
been a program for Russian-Israelis, and a program for 
members of SHAS.  They said that the SHAS outreach has gone 
very well, particularly the efforts with SHAS women, who tend 
to support peace as a principle and are open to learning 
about the details and meeting Palestinians.  Radoshitzky 
pointed out that the granddaughter of SHAS spiritual leader 
Rabbi Ovadia Yosef has been active in the SHAS events with 
GI, and that the Rabbi's daughter said she will attend the 
 
TEL AVIV 00002255  003 OF 003 
 
 
next event.  The GI representatives said that the Russian 
programs have been less successful, as the Russians tend to 
be more right-wing, and hold what the GI representatives 
claimed is a common Russian value that one never willingly 
gives up conquered land.  Overall, they said, the GI will 
continue these and other efforts to help Israelis believe 
that peace is realistic and achievable. 
CUNNINGHAM