Israel Policy Forum supports Congressional legislation introduced today that furthers the goal of two states, specifically the bill to establish the Partnership Fund for Peace and the Senate resolution favoring two states and opposing unilateral West Bank annexation. The Partnership Fund for Peace, which is intended to facilitate and finance joint economic ventures and people-to-people exchanges between Palestinians, Israelis, and Americans, will help build the trust necessary on the ground for Israeli and Palestinians to support larger political efforts in service of a two-state agenda. The Senate resolution lays out the only political vision that will ensure Israel’s secure, Jewish, and democratic future, while giving Palestinians the sovereignty and dignity that will come with an independent state, and rightly warns about the dangers that even partial annexation would present to realizing this vision.
In today’s challenging political environment, in which the commitment to two states by Israel, the Palestinians, and the United States is in question and under varying degrees of assault, we are heartened to see clear statements in support of two states such as these moving through Congress. We thank Senators Merkley, Feinstein, Sanders, Warren, Durbin, Duckworth, Baldwin, and Udall for their sponsorship of the two-state resolution and Senators Coons, Graham, Kaine, and Gardner and Representatives Lowey and Fortenberry for their bipartisan sponsorship of the Partnership Fund.
