[osint] A SHORT GUIDE TO BAZAAR NEGOTIATIONS

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October 23, 2007
A SHORT GUIDE TO BAZAAR NEGOTIATIONS-Dedicated t o Those Obsessed With Peace

Dedicated to Those Obsessed With Peace
Moshe Sharon

Everybody says that his donkey is a horse.
There is no tax on words.
(Two Arab proverbs)

On December 25th 1977, at the very beginning of the negotiations between
Israel and Egypt in Ismailia, I had the opportunity to have a short
discussion with Muhammad Anwar Sadat the president of Egypt. "Tell your
Prime Minister, he said, that this is a bazaar; the merchandise is
expensive." I told my Prime Minister but he failed to abide by the rules of
the bazaar. The failure was not unique to him. It is the failure of all the
Israeli governments and the media.
On March 4, 1994, I published an article in The Jerusalem Post called
"Novices in Negotiations." The occasion was the conclusion of the Cairo
Agreement. A short time later Yasser Arafat proved yet again that his
signature was not worth the ink of his pen let alone the paper it was
written on, and his word was worth even less. Then, as in every subsequent
agreement, Israel was taken aback when her concessions became the basis for
fresh Arab demands.
In Middle Eastern bazaar diplomacy, agreements are kept not because they are
signed but because they are imposed. Besides, in the bazaar of the
Arab-Israeli conflict, the two sides are not discussing the same
merchandise. The Israelis wish to acquire peace based on the Arab-Muslim
acceptance of Israel as a Jewish state. The objective of the Arabs is to
annihilate the Jewish state, replace it with an Arab state, and get rid of
the Jews.
To achieve their goal, the Arabs took to the battlefield and to bazaar
diplomacy. The most important rule in the bazaar is that if the vendor knows
that you desire to purchase a certain piece of merchandise, he will raise
its price. The merchandise in question is "peace" and the Arabs give the
impression that they actually have this merchandise and inflate its price,
when in truth they do not have it at all.
This is the wisdom of the bazaar: if you are clever enough, you can sell
nothing at a price. The Arabs sell words, they sign agreements, and they
trade with vague promises, but are sure to receive generous down payments
from eager buyers. In the bazaar only a foolish buyer pays for something he
has never seen.

There is another rule in the market as well as across the negotiating table:
the side that first presents his terms is bound to lose; the other side
builds his next move using the open cards of his opponent as the starting
point.
In all her negotiations with the Palestinian Arabs, Israel has rushed to
offer plans, and was surprised to discover that after an agreement had been
"concluded" it had become the basis for further demands.
Most amazing is the reaction in such cases. Israeli politicians, "experts"
and the media eagerly provide "explanations" for the Arabs’ behavior. One of
the most popular explanations is that these or other Arab pronouncements are
"for internal use," as if "internal use" does not count. Other explanations
invoke "the Arab sensitivity to symbols," "honor," "matters of emotion" and
other more patronizing sayings of this nature. Does Israel possess no
"sensitivities" or does it have no honor? What does all this have to do with
political encounters?
It is therefore essential, as the late President Sadat advised, to learn the
rules of the oriental bazaar before venturing into the arena of bazaar
diplomacy. The most important rule is the Roman saying: "If you want peace -
prepare for war." Never come to the negotiating table from a position of
weakness. Your adversary should always know that you are strong and ready
for war even more than you are ready for peace.
In the present situation in the Middle East and in the foreseeable future
"peace" is an empty word. Israel should delete the word "peace" from its
vocabulary together along with such phrases as "the price of peace" or
"territory for peace." For a hundred years the Jews have been begging the
Arabs to sell them peace, ready to pay any price. They have received
nothing, because the Arabs have no peace to sell, but they have still paid
dearly. It must be said in all fairness that the Arabs have not made a
secret of the fact that what they meant by the word "peace" was nothing more
than a limited ceasefire for a limited period.
Since this is the situation, Israel should openly declare that it has
decided to create a new state of affairs in the Middle East, compelling the
Arab side to ask for peace and pay for it. Unlike the Arabs, Israel has this
merchandise for sale.
From now on Israel should be the side demanding payment for peace. If the
Arabs want peace, Israel should fix its price in real terms. The Arabs will
pay if they reach the conclusion that Israel is so strong that they cannot
destroy it. Because of this, Israel’s deterrent power is essential.
Therefore, if anyone asks Israel for plans,

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