Blair: Sunni states ready to normalize Israel ties based on Arab peace plan

Former British prime minister Tony Blair says Sunni Muslim countries are ready to normalize ties with Israel should the Jewish state negotiate a peace deal with the PA on the basis of the Arab Peace Initiative.

The plan, first proposed in 2002, calls for full normalization between Israel and the Arab world in exchange for a withdrawal from the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Golan Heights. It would include land swaps, the establishment of a Palestinian state and a negotiated agreement on Palestinian refugees.

“Provided the Israeli government is ready to commit to a discussion around the Arab peace initiative … it would be possible to have some steps of normalization along the way to give confidence to this process,” says Blair, according to Haaretz.

“With the new leadership in the region today that is possible. A lot will depend on the response of the Israeli government to President Sissi’s initiative and to the Arab Peace Initiative, and to whatever steps the Israelis are ready to take,” he says.

Blair has in recent years been working independently on a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians.

— JTA

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