Secretary of State Rice presses Israel on roadblocks

I do have to give the Bush administration credit for sticking with the Israel-Palestine peace process. Last weekend Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice flew to the region for face-to-face talks with the leaders on both sides.

And in response to complaints from the Palestinians, she raised the issue of roadblocks and settlements with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. Rice told the Israelis of the need to create "an atmosphere that is conducive to negotiations."

In the diplomatic niceties that surround these negotiations it was pretty blunt talk. The Palestinians think the Israeli settlements are nothing but an attempt at stealing their land, and say that the checkpoints (which the Israelis say are necessary to maintain security and protect from terror attacks) make normal life in the territories nearly impossible. They also claim that their presence is slowing the peace negotiations.

President Bush inadvertently got an up-close view of the checkpoints during his visit to Israel and the West Bank when bad weather forced him to take a motorcade, rather than a helicopter, into the Palestinian Territory. While his motorcade was sped through the checkpoints, he saw the lines where Palestinians can spend hours waiting to pass through.

I wondered at the time if the experience would give him a different perspective on the peace process. Sec. Rice's trip makes me think that it has.