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When the UN created Israel in 1948, war broke out. In 1949, a truce was declared and "The Green Line" was drawn on a map to demark ceasefire borders. Wars broke out regularly: in 1956, 1967, 1973, 1982 and 2006. The conflict, including terrorist attacks and military retribution, has continued almost non-stop. The famous Camp David Accords (1978) provided the first real steps toward peace, resulting in a treaty between Egypt and Israel (1979). Fifteen years later, a peace agreement with Jordan (1994) provided hope that lasting peace might unfold from the Oslo Accords, signed the previous year after the first Intifada.

However-despite these developments and the emergent Palestinian Authority (PA), the ultimate failure of Oslo, the 2nd Intifada (2000) and the second Lebanon War (2006) blocked peace. The election of a Hamas majority for the PA and the ensuing violence that resulted dampened hopes further. Combined with nearly daily Hamas-supported Qassam rocket attacks on Southern Israel and Israel's increasingly aggressive response, the current picture does not bode well for peace.

Surrounding the immediate Palestinian-Israeli conflict, a belt of unresolved disagreements with neighboring countries pulls itself tight, leaving no breathing room. While uneasy treaties provide some space in relationships with Egypt and Jordan, still Syria and Lebanon loom large. Iranian threats and support to Hezbollah, alongside the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, provide dangerous combustion to this volatile mix. Thus, the "Road Map to Peace," a process that really began with a green line on a map, falters under heavy regional burdens. Despite a momentary respite provided by the truce between Hamas and Israel, the current process won't provide a lasting settlement to the long-standing conflict. The US and other parties focus too much on borders and not enough on the underlying complexity of the conflict over borders.

The "Road Map to Peace" focuses too much on borders and not enough on underlying economic complexity of the conflict. As much as religion or ideology, economic considerations boil in rage. Without considering economic as well as political issues, the "Road Map" will fail. Peace requires more than a cessation of fighting or the creation of a Palestinian State or guaranteeing security for Israel-although all of these are necessary, they are not sufficient. Peace will require, in addition to those issues, a comprehensive set of policies that create cooperative economic and resource management, open trade, and access to labor and markets.

However, neither Israel nor Palestine is rich in resources. Both have large agricultural segments of their economies. Moreover, for agriculture to succeed, the region needs one resource more than any other: water. Water is possibly the most significant regional economic issue. Any lasting peace plan will need to include an economic policy that includes regional management of water.

Without a regional economic plan as part of the peace process, a plan that provides fair, sustainable regional water policies, it is unlikely that there will be regional peace, no matter who controls any particular piece of land. The Jordan River and its tributaries provide water for Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Israel. The Sea of Galilee, the principle reservoir along the Jordan, has dropped to record levels due to poor policy and drought. Snowmelt and springs that supply the Galilee lie in areas occupied by Israel but claimed by Lebanon and Syria. The U.S. has largely ignored this important economic issue when addressing the ideological conflicts of the Middle East.

Learn more about this author, Michael Deqel.
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