Building line again an issue today? Dov Weisglass to IMRA (2013):
Why settlement construction area never delineated as planned with US in 2004

[Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: Israel Radio reported this morning (8 June 2020)
that there is a dispute with the Americans regarding the boundaries of the
Jewish communities located within Palestinian territory. Given that the
Americans have been saying that, for the time being, construction would be
limited in those communities to building taller structures with those
communities, it appears that they are following the approach of the 2004
arrangement which was never implemented. Dov Weisglass explained to IMRA in
2013 why it was never implemented.]

Dov Weisglass to IMRA: Why settlement construction area never delineated as
planned with US

Dr. Aaron Lerner – IMRA 28 October, 2013

IMRA contacted Attorney Dov Weisglass, who served as Chief of the Prime
Minister's Bureau during Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s administration,
asking why the settlement construction maps that were supposed to be
prepared along with US Ambassador Kurtzer a few days after April 14, 2004
were never drawn up.

In a conversation this evening, Dov Weisglass told IMRA that back on 30
April 2003 Israel and the Bush Administration agreed to the principle that
settlement construction would be limited to within the construction line of
the settlements.

The two sides started to take practical measures and an American team
together with an Israeli team started to go over aerial photos and it turned
out that there were a lot of difficulties coming up with the edge of the
construction. As a result of this to the process was held up.

In the meantime, Weisglass explain, we reached the end of 2003 start of
2004 and we started talking about the Disengagement and the work on the
construction line was delayed.

This matter came to a head with the April 14, 2004 exchange of letters in
Washington that included:

Dr. Condoleezza Rice
National Security Adviser
The White House
Washington, D.C.

Dear Dr. Rice,

On behalf of the Prime Minister of the State of Israel, Mr. Ariel Sharon, I
wish to reconfirm the following understanding, which had been reached
between us:

1. Restrictions on settlement growth: within the agreed principles of
settlement activities, an effort will be made in the next few days to have a
better definition of the construction line of settlements in Judea and
Samaria [the West Bank]. An Israeli team, in conjunction with Ambassador
Kurtzer, will review aerial photos of settlements and will jointly define
the construction line of each of the settlements.

...
Sincerely,

Dov Weisglass
Chief of the Prime Minister's Bureau

After that the teams returned to work but a difference in principle arose
between Ambassador Kurtzer and the Israelis regarding which settlements
would be included in the process.

We wanted, Weisglass noted, to start from East to West and not deal with the
large settlement blocs as we explained to the Americans that it was silly to
include them and put limits on development there as we already have a letter
(Bush April 14, 2004 letter to Sharon: "... In light of new realities on the
ground, including already existing major Israeli populations centers...It is
realistic to expect that any final status agreement will only be achieved on
the basis of mutually agreed changes that reflect these realities.") showing
that we see eye to eye on the large settlement blocs

As the situation was sensitive and pressure great the question of belief of
the promise in the Bush letter about the large settlement blocs was
important for the belief of the public in the Disengagement.

We thought that the letter would even gain us support from settlers living
in the large settlement blocs.

So it was important to have public see that we have US support for the large
settlement blocs and this would have been questioned if at the same time we
would have an issue with construction in the large settlement blocs.

So we wanted to put off this matter

A large US team that was to come was cancelled – this was around Jewish New
Years September/October 2004. The formal excuse was the because of Jewish
New Years it was difficult to coordinate the visit of part of the delegation
that included Elliot Abrams.

The visit was cancelled and never renewed.
________________________________________
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis

Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on
Arab-Israeli relations

Website: www.imra.org.il