David Milliband sits in his stall
Posted in News under National | on Sep 23 2008
The Foreign Secretary appeared in several important fringe meetings outlining UK foreign policy. In the two I attended, heartfelt thanks by Iraqi politicians and trade unionists for the overthrow of Sadam Hussein were a salutary reminder that the starting points for our view on the war depend largely on which regime you were living under.
As a staunch friend of Israel and a passionate supporter of a two state solution for Palestine, David Milliband conducts a difficult balancing act. It could be argued, though, that with irreconcilable opposites, a choice has to be made. Against the state terror tactics of a resurgent Russian regime, he has been admirably focused, strong and clear. But he could not bring himself to face down the state terrorism of Israel which has created Hamas in its image and is the fuel for global terror movements. The pretence that an even handed approach can be adopted between an oppressor and the oppressed, the keystone of the consensus on how to deal with the horrors of Palestine, is the logical and ethical black hole down which all attempts at solution have so far vanished.