Palestinian Chief Negotiator Says No Deal Before Bush Leaves Office

[News and Analysis] Hours after White House spokeswoman Dana Perino reiterated U.S. President George W. Bush’s belief that a deal between Israel and the Palestinians before the end of his term was possible, the Palestinian chief negotiator expressed the opposite belief. Speaking at an Israeli conference, Ahmad Qurei’ said he didn’t "think that we will be able to reach an agreement this year." Meanwhile, in Ramallah, Palestinian Prime Minister Salaam Faya’d went further and expressed uncertainty as to whether a two-state solution was possible altogether. Faya’d blamed it on the Israelis, and specifically on Israeli building in post-1967 territory. While most pundits agree that an agreement in 2008 is extremely unlikely – pointing to political instability on both sides: Israel facing national elections and the Palestinians still unable to achieve unity among the various factions – analysts at The Media Line point out that raising doubt about the viability of a two-state solution is both strategic and tactical on the part of Palestinian leaders. The message is that the alternative is one bi-national state, which many Israelis believe will lose its Jewish identity.