NICHOLAS BURNS, FORMER UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE, SUMS UP MIDDLE EAST AS BUSH PRESIDENCY END APPROACHES

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by Citizen Paul

It was a year ago this month that the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Nicholas Burns, wrote me.

In his letter to me and Goals for Americans on July 18, 2007, the Under Secretary said, “I wish you and your organization continued success in your efforts to educate the American population about for the foreign policy challenges we face.”

This year in May I was fortunate to be able to personally visit five countries in the Middle East. This was a visit I had long prepared for and a visit that has propelled me to reach some tough conclusions that will soon be detailed in the special report I’m preparing and titling Saving Israel From Itself.

In this special report I am assuming the responsibility of an American citizen who is determined:

to help right the wrongs the Government of Israel has inflicted on the people of Palestine,
to finally correct the injustices that have lead to so much hatred and bloodshed in that part of the world,
to outline how a real peace can finally be achieved between Israel, the Palestinian people, and the Arab and Muslim countries.

On my trip I met so many wonderful young people — Israelis and Palestinians alike.

I was so moved to hear how they are working tirelessly to achieve a peaceful future, all too often having to oppose what their governments are doing and what my own government in Washington is doing.

Of course I am well aware that leaders in government are often subjected to tremendous pressures from lobbyists and special interests. That is true in Washington just as it is in the Middle East.

When it comes to peace and justice in the Middle East, starting first and foremost with peace in the area known as The Holy Land — Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories today — these governments, including our own, have failed us badly.

It is with all of these concerns in mind that I take very special interest in what Nicholas Burns has to say.

Mr. Burns has now left the State Department and, as he indicates, is now speaking up as a private citizen about our foreign policy, about the Arab-Israeli conflict, and about the dangerous situation in the greater Middle East from Pakistan to Egypt.

Mr. Burns, a career diplomat, is certainly a tremendously talented individual who has distinguished himself serving our country for many years.

And yet I have to conclude that I am quite disappointed in what Mr. Burns is saying, and not saying, especially now that he is, in effect, a free man no longer constrained by representing official government policy.

This 20-minute video of Mr. Burns presenting his conclusions on July 30, 2008, about the situation in the Middle East as the Bush Administration comes to a close is important for all of us to watch and consider.

So important in fact that next week I will be making my own reply.