Deputy Consul General Andy David of the Israeli Consulate to the Midwest said Monday the Annapolis Peace Summit last week was successful in its mission to re-ignite the peace process in the Middle East.

David spoke to students and faculty at the UW Hillel Foundation about the impact of the conference on Middle Eastern conflicts.

David said the conference in Annapolis was not intended to produce a peace treaty or resolve the conflicts of the Middle East. Instead, it was meant as a way to begin a course of action that will possibly lead to a resolution.

David said he feels there is potential for peace in today’s world because the way Arab countries feel today is very different from the way they felt in the past.

“There is a political will in the Arab world to move forward,” David said.

According to David, another big change in the Middle East is the fear in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt of the Shiite fundamentalist movement moving in and taking control. David said this fear has largely intensified after the seizure of Gaza by Hamas in June 2007.

“Suddenly there is a convergence of interest between Arab countries and Israel,” David said.

David named what he said are the two hanging issues in the Middle East. The first is the establishment of Israel, and the second is its expansion in 1967.

“All the issues coming out of Israel’s expansion are solvable,” David said. “But the big question is, will the Palestinians settle for the issues of expansion, or will they still not accept Israel’s right to exist as a state of the Jewish people?”

David said he believed the international community’s support is needed if there is to be peace.

“We have a window of opportunity,” he said.

“I don’t know if that window is wide open or if it is just a crack, but we definitely identify a time in our history where there is a potential. This is why we were in Annapolis.”