Presidential contender Barack Obama stepped into the thicket of Mideast politics Tuesday, declaring in Jordan that neither the Israelis nor the Palestinians are strong enough internally to make the bold concessions necessary for peace. Obama said he would work to bring the two sides together “starting from the minute I'm sworn into office.” But he cautioned it is “unrealistic to expect that a US president alone can suddenly snap his fingers and bring about peace in this region.” After meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah II, Obama flew to Israel for talks with Israeli leaders. He'll also meet later with Palestinians. Upon his arrival in Jerusalem, he spoke of a “historic and special relationship between the United States and Israel, one that cannot be broken” and one that he hoped to strengthen as president. Obama said that an ultimate resolution in the region is going to involve “two states standing side-by-side in peace and security and that the Israelis and the Palestinians are going to both have to make compromises in order to arrive at that two-state solution. Yet, he added, “One of the difficulties that we have right now is that in order to make those compromises you have to have strong support from your people. And the Israeli government right now is unsettled. ... “The Palestinians are divided between Fatah and Hamas. And so it's difficult for either side to make the bold move that would bring about peace the way, for example, the peace between Israel and Egypt was brought about. Those leaders were in a much stronger position to initiate that kind of peace.” Obama has been to the Middle East before, but not as the Democratic presidential nominee-in-waiting, and his Jordanian hosts seemed eager to prepare a warm greeting. King Abdullah flew back from Colorado for the visit, and Obama aides said the Jordanians had suggested a one-on-one meeting before the two were joined by a larger group for dinner at the palace. The king later drove his guest to the airport in his Mercedes. Following dinner, Obama flew aboard his newly refurbished chartered campaign jet to Israel for meetings with Israeli leaders as well as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on the West Bank.
