By IANS,
Dubai : US President George W. Bush’s three-day Middle East visit has been viewed sceptically in the Arab media, as it questioned whether he could succeed in making a new push for peace in the long-troubled region, WAM news agency reported Thursday.
Bush arrived in Tel Aviv Wednesday on a 48-hour visit, then flew by helicopter to Jerusalem for events Wednesday and Thursday marking the 60th anniversary of Israel’s birth in the wake of the Nazi genocide of 6 million Jews.
Can Bush’s visit to the Middle East, the last as the US president, take forward the peace process? asked Khaleej Times, a top English-language newspaper in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
It was the last chance for the world’s most powerful statesman (Bush) to do something concrete to bring peace in the region, the paper said.
“Diplomacy notwithstanding, what is most likely to blunt Bush’s final push for peace is the lack of political credibility he enjoyed on both sides of the equation,” the paper said, casting doubts over Bush succeeding in his efforts this time too.
It added: “In Israel, the 60-year celebrations mask the fact that Olmert is bracing for the toughest slugfest of his political life, with charges of corruption threatening to end his stint at the top a tad sooner than mandated.”
“In Palestine, on the other hand, the blood-soaked divide between Fatah and Hamas only grows with time, making any expectations of peace the stuff of foolish dreams,” it said.
Criticising Bush’s war on terror, the paper said, “The war on terror that has dominated Bush’s presidency has shown that the US president has not always been too fond of keeping in check with reality.”
“He seemingly forgets, however, that the thrust for peace in Palestine was originally meant to deflect the downturn brought about in the wake of that very disregard for reality. More of the same with regard to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will only bring him more of the same when it comes to international opinion,” it added.