Former UN chief: No wonder everyone hates you
Boutros Boutros Ghali blames Israel for lack of peace in Middle East, paints a stark picture for future of Arab-Israeli relations; 'After 30 years, I don't even see one centimeter of progress'
"After 30 years, I don't see even a centimeter of progress," Ghali gloomily recounts in an interview with Yedioth Ahronoth. "It's completely possible to say that people hate you—not only in Egypt, but throughout the entire Arab world."
The former UN Secretary General says he cannot think of any reason to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat's historic visit to Jerusalem - far from it. Ghali's blame for the failure to promote Arab-Israeli peace falls squarely on one recipient: Israel. He attacks Israel for peace negotiation failures, defends the Iranian nuclear program and protests that the whole world complains about suicide bombings but is silent on IDF targeted killings.
The former peace negotiator paints a bleak picture for the future: "The Arab world is busy in its struggle against fundamentalists and cannot allow itself to recognize Israel because it will strengthen (the fundamentalists). I reiterate: The Arab world refuses to accept Israel's existence and therefore curbs all of Israel's attempts to normalize relations."
Cold or frigid?
The former UN chief - a professor and lecturer of international law who was nominated to be an Egyptian government minister for foreign affairs and participated in the formulation of the Camp David Peace Accords - is the one who coined the term 'cold peace' to describe Israeli-Egyptian relations after the momentous peace agreement.Who is to blame for the so-called cold peace? Ghali is quick to point out that Israel carries the bulk of the blame. "From the first day, during Sadat's speech in the Knesset, we said that there would not be a true, full peace as long as Israel did not return Sinai and leave Gaza and the West Bank. When Sadat went to Jerusalem, he went with a vision to start-up not just the Egyptian track, but also the Palestinian one - but (the Israelis) sealed (their) ears shut.
"We said: the Palestinian issue is connected to the axis of the peace agreement - it’s the first condition. We warned (them) time and time again that it would not work. And (the Israelis)? (They) insisted on signing a separate peace with Egypt, (they) day-dreamed about the blossoming of bilateral relations and increased cooperation."
Best PR man in the biz
The only compliments the aging Egyptian had for Israel came in the form of praise for Israeli President Shimon Peres: "In my eyes Shimon Peres is a man of dreams. He is an asset for (the Israelis), the number one PR man in the State of Israel. I am older than Peres by one year, and look how both of us never cease running around and working."
Ghali, who is turning 85 this year, looks great for his age and hasn't stopped working. "I have a full-time job. I work 10 hours a day, seven days a week. I travel, lecture, read, write, give interviews. I am a member of dozens of boards on international law and in Egypt, I am the head of the humans rights council."
Married to a Jewish woman
The former UN Secretary General shares his elegant Paris apartment with his Jewish spouse Leah. The two are the same age. They met in 1956 and married after a whirlwind romance. Leah is a descendant of a Romanian family that immigrated to Alexandria. She has never been interviewed and has never visited Israel. "She keeps a low profile," her husband says.When asked if he ever ran into difficulties for being married to a Jew, Ghali's face toughens and he responds: "I never had any trouble at all, in my eyes Leah although from a Jewish background, is more Catholic since she spent more time in Catholic schools than in Jewish ones."
