Former U.S. President Carter Meets With Hamas Leaders

Max Peck / April 17, 2008, 3:25 PM / Global Political Relations / #13

Today, former U.S. president Jimmy Carter is scheduled to meet with two senior Hamas officials in the capital of Egypt. Interestingly, Carter may not be working in the best interests of both the U.S. and Israeli governments, who claim to a strict policy of not negotiating with terrorists.

This is only one stop on Carter’s nine-day journey abroad, which his websites names an "ongoing effort to support peace, democracy, and human rights in the region.” On Wednesday, Carter met with Palestinian leaders on the West Bank, and on Friday he plans to meet with Hamas’ exiled leader Khalid Meshaal in Syria.

During Carter’s stop in Israel, most Israeli government officials actually refused to meet with him, showing their disagreement over his urges that they directly speak to Hamas leaders. In a recent poll of the Israeli state, 64% of the population was found to believe that a dialogue between the Israeli government and Hamas would be a favorable action.

I agree with Carter’s actions here. Regardless of whether or not Hamas fits into governments’ definitions of a terrorist organization, it is playing an undeniably large role in the political climate of the Middle East. I do not see the downside of direct talks; they do not seem conciliatory, nor indulgent. They seem sensible to me.