Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called to mind the historic Camp David meetings between Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat in a speech to Likud Party supporters today.

With direct talks between Israelis and Palestinians set to begin in Washington, it will be fascinating to see if Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas are ready to assume the mantle of Begin and Sadat beyond simply offering rhetorical flourishes.

In other words, we already know these men to be gifted speakers and it’s very likely that they’ll comport themselves well in the upcoming discussions. But what about their actions?

As Netanyahu went on to say:

‘We want real peace agreements that guarantee the security of Israel for the benefit of peace and prosperity for Israel and its neighbors and if possible the rest of the Arab world.’

A great deal of compromise and fortitude — from both leaders — will be necessary in order to achieve the “real peace agreements” that Netanyahu claims to want. To truly put peace at the center of these negotiations, and to compromise in order to ensure both an independent Palestinian state and a secure Israeli state will be difficult and dangerous. Those who took this challenge seriously in the past — like Anwar Sadat and Yitzhak Rabin — paid a terrible price for their peace-making attempts, but their accomplishments are undeniable.

The old adage that actions speak louder than words is a hackneyed one, but — at this particular historical moment, with the deck seeming so heavily stacked against the peace process — it would be refreshing to see Netanyahu and Abbas approach these negotiations in a way not done by so many of their recent predecessors.

Full article here.