Paris Peace Conference Makes Clear the Two-State Solution is the Only Way Forward

January 15, 2017

Today’s Paris Peace Conference was a powerful testament to the overwhelming international support that exists for the two-state solution and to the urgent need for Israelis and Palestinians to take serious steps toward resolving their conflict.

Diplomats and foreign ministers from over 75 countries, including Secretary of State Kerry, gathered to make clear that they are committed to doing what it takes to help Israelis and Palestinians return to the negotiating table, and that they refuse to look away while the situation on the ground deteriorates and the divide between the two parties grows.

This conference further drives home a basic truth that must be understood by all responsible parties: The two-state solution is the only viable way to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and secure the security and rights of both peoples. Steps taken by either side to undermine the possibility of a two-state solution and to pursue an alternative outcome by altering “facts on the ground” only perpetuate the conflict at the cost of countless lives and the mounting impatience of the international community.

Israeli leaders should realize that the world gathers not to condemn Israel, but to affirm support for Israel’s right to live in peace and security inside internationally recognized borders. Global leaders challenge actions like settlement expansion and Palestinian violence and incitement that endanger the future of both peoples.

For American Jews and others invested in the future of either or both the Israeli and Palestinian people, it is critical that we not turn away from the facts on the ground. We should listen to what the world is saying about the urgency of resolving this conflict and commit to working to achieve a two-state solution.

At J Street, we will continue to make clear to our elected leaders in the White House and in Congress that the vast majority of American Jews and pro-Israel, pro-peace Americans believe that only the two-state solution can guarantee Israel’s future as a secure, democratic homeland for the Jewish people.

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