By John Sexton

Yousuf Ramadan, Councilor at the Palestinian Embassy in Beijing gave an exclusive interview to China.org.cn in which he talked about the new Israeli government, his hopes for the administration of President Obama, the situation in Gaza, and the dangers of a new war in the Middle East.

Yousuf Ramadan, Councilor at the Palestinian Embassy in Beijing [China.org.cn]

New Israeli government

Mr Ramadan said he is extremely pessimistic about the prospects for negotiations with the new Israeli government that includes Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud Party, the extremist Yisrael Beitenu Party of foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman, and the Labour Party led by Defense Minister Ehud Barak.

"Netanyahu's policy is for some sort of entity for the Palestinians but not a state. Lieberman does not believe the Jewish state should have any Arabs in it. I am very worried about the future of the Middle East peace process."

"It is most unfortunate, but it's what the Israeli people chose and they have to be responsible for the consequences."

Israel's problem, he said, is that its entire historical leadership has left the political stage. The sole survivor of that generation of leaders, Ariel Sharon, lies dying in a coma. A lack of leadership was the reason Israeli society had "shifted unbelievably to the extreme right" at the last election.

He expressed surprise that Ehud Barak had led the Labour Party into a coalition with extreme rightist Lieberman. Recalling that the Labour Party had founded the Jewish state and ruled it until 1976, he said "If you had told an Israeli 20 years ago that one day Labor would get only 12 or 13 seats in the Knesset they would not believe you." But, he added, Labor has been in steep decline for years. "Barak doesn't have anything to lose. He is like a dying man who is offered morphine. He just accepted."

One advantage of the new government for the Palestinians, said Mr Ramadan, is that it is likely to be more straight-talking than previous administrations. While other Israeli governments said they wanted peace but showed by expanding Jewish settlements on occupied land that in reality they did not, the Netanyahu government "will say exactly what they are going to do – which could be profitable for us."

We have hope in Obama

Mr Ramadan said he was not expecting any major moves from President Obama on the Middle East during 2009. He said Palestinians understood that the economic crisis and not the Middle East is the top priority for the US administration right now. But he added, "He is not only President for the United States and we hope he will devote time to the issue."

"We have hope in Obama, we do; frankly we do. We want to give Obama a chance."

The Middle East is one of the most important strategic area for the USA and it will be impossible for Obama to turn his back on the issue, he added. "I believe he will personally engage himself in this issue as soon as there is some kind of relaxation or semi-relaxation in the financial crisis."