US embassy cable - 05TELAVIV229

C O N F I D E N T I A L TEL AVIV 000229 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/12/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, KPAL, KWBG, IS, ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN AFFAIRS 
SUBJECT: MINISTER SHARANSKY: PA ELECTIONS A GOOD START, BUT 
PALESTINIANS NEED INDEPENDENT MIDDLE CLASS 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Daniel C. Kurtzer for reasons 1.4 (b,d). 
 
1.  (C) Summary: Minister Natan Sharansky told the Ambassador 
January 10 that the Palestinian elections were important in 
that they have led to new leadership and opportunities.  He 
added, however, that he could not refer to the elections as 
"free or democratic" given the "fear" that exists in 
Palestinian society.  Sharansky referred to his November 11 
meeting with President Bush, and noted that the President and 
he had agreed that peace would come from promoting democracy 
in the region.  Sharansky opined that newly-elected PA 
President Abu Mazen should be strengthened, but complained 
that Abu Mazen has done little to curb incitement against 
Israel.  The Ambassador underscored that the PA and Israel 
each have responsibilities to undertake in order to advance 
the peace process.  Among them, he noted, is for the PA to 
strengthen the rule of law on the street and for Israel to 
curb provocation and violence by extremist settlers. 
 
2.  (U) Summary cont'd: Sharansky, an opponent of 
disengagement, who is not a Knesset member, noted to the 
Ambassador that Likud's Central Committee agreed January 6 to 
the merger of his Yisrael B'Aliya party with Likud, which 
would add what Sharansky said are 128 disengagement opponents 
to the Likud Central Committee.  The Yisrael B'Aliya Central 
Committee will vote on the merger on or about January 16. 
Minister Sharansky was accompanied by his advisor, Aryeh 
Green.  End summary. 
 
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Elections Are a Start 
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3.  (C)  Minister-Without-Portfolio Natan Sharansky used his 
new book, "The Case for Democracy: The Power of Freedom to 
Overcome Tyranny and Terror" as a backdrop to his January 10 
meeting with the Ambassador, stressing the importance of 
supporting democracy, including in Iraq, in order to promote 
peace in the region.  Sharansky referred to his November 11 
meeting with President Bush, noting with pleasure that 
President Bush told him that his book provides the 
theoretical basis for many of the President's instincts. 
Sharansky noted that while he does not believe the January 9 
PA elections were "free and democratic" because of the "fear" 
that exists in Palestinian society, he believes the elections 
were a good start, in that they resulted in a new leadership 
that can now advance democracy.  The Palestinians, he 
underlined, "have a very good chance of developing a 
democracy since they have an educated middle class." 
Sharansky stressed the importance of nurturing an independent 
Palestinian middle class, and of breaking the economic 
"monopoly" of three or four Palestinian families.  While he 
complained that newly-elected PA president Abu Mazen has not 
done enough to curb Palestinian religious incitement against 
Israel, Sharansky underlined that Abu Mazen should be 
strengthened. 
 
4.  (C)  The Ambassador noted that participants in the recent 
Oslo donors meeting voiced their willingness to provide 
substantial assistance to the PA with the condition that this 
assistance be tied to reform.  He said that Palestinians have 
responsibilities to fulfill in order to move the peace 
process forward, including instituting judicial reform, 
installing an effective police force and removing weapons 
from the street.  The Ambassador said that Israel also has 
responsibilities in the process, such as curbing provocations 
and violence by extremist settlers.  As an example, the 
Ambassador noted that the GOI could prevent incidents such as 
that where settlers attacked members of an NGO who were 
helping Palestinian residents tend to their olive groves. 
Sharansky said he was not aware of these attacks, and asked 
his advisor, Aryeh Green, to provide him with more 
information. 
 
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Sharansky Adds Support to Anti-Disengagement Likudniks 
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5.  (SBU) Sharansky highlighed the January 6 Likud Central 
Committee decision to approve the merger of Sharansky's 
Russian immigrant-based Yisrael b'Aliya Party with Likud. 
The merger, Sharansky noted, adds 128 anti-disengagement 
members to Likud's Central Committee. 
 
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KURTZER