Shimon Peres: The Gaps Have Narrowed

He has served in a dozen cabinets, shared the Nobel Prize for his part in the Oslo accords, and twice been prime minister. So after more than 65 years at the center of Israeli history, Shimon Peres was prepared for something different—the presidency. The post is largely ceremonial (though he can dissolve and reconstitute a government), but Peres is still something of an éminence grise. He sat down with NEWSWEEK's Adam B. Kushner to chat about the upcoming election and his undaunted hope for a peaceful Middle East. Excerpts:

Kushner: What might a new government accomplish that the last one didn ' t?
Peres: The last government had some achievements. The gaps between us and the Palestinians were narrowed, particularly on land and borders. The main differences are small: some say 3 percent, others say 5 percent [of land exchanged]. These are manageable. It takes time. But a new government could continue and conclude. Also, there's a beginning of an understanding on how to solve the refugee problem. There are serious talks on security. We haven't yet touched the burning question of Jerusalem, but we don't start from zero game.

What kind of understanding on refugees?
For a very long time, their position was that all the refugees should come back to Israel, which would mean to dismantle Israel as a Jewish state. Now they see that we have to reach an agreement and it must be a just solution. Meanwhile, there are two major ideological changes among the Jews and the Arabs. On the Jewish side, the national debate between a Greater Israel and a two-state solution with partition is practically over. On the Arab side, there was a policy of "no negotiation, no recognition, no peace." Instead, they've introduced a peace plan of their own, so the two traditional debates have changed.

Can Prime Minister Tzipi Livni pick up where the last government left off?
She was head of the negotiating team. So she knows exactly where we stand.

You say it takes time. Do you worry that the more time it takes, the less support there will be among Palestinians for two states?
How we can force them? We can't and we shouldn't. But it's either an agreement or a continuation of the conflict, which is extremely expensive to both sides. The problem is that the Arab world has more divisions than unity. So if they cannot unite, they cannot give orders to Hizbullah, to Hamas, and not to Iran. And Iran is the greatest divider today in Muslim world. They want Iranian religious hegemony over the whole area. Somebody said "nothing divides the Arab world more than its unity."

Would an attack on Iran unify the Muslim world?
I'm against that, and I think it's a mistake to speak about. Iran is a danger to the world, not just to Israel. The world would be ungovernable if they continue.