leadership, and brought the Palestinian national movement to its recognition of the existence of Israel. In this respect, the agreement-and the exchange of letters that preceded it-were of paramount historical significance.
62. In effect, the agreement gave the Palestinian national movement a territorial base on Palestinian soil, the structure of a "state in the making," and armed forces: facts that would play an important role in the ongoing Palestinian struggle. For the Israelis, the agreement opened the gates to the Arab world and put an end to Palestinian attacks, as long as the agreement was effective.
63. The most substantive flaw in the agreement was that the final aim was not spelled out, allowing the two sides to continue to aim for entirely different objectives. The Palestinians saw the interim agreement as a highway to the end of the occupation and to the establishment of a Palestinian state in all the occupied territories (which altogether constitute 22 percent of the area of the former Palestine between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River). On the other hand, successive Israeli governments regarded it as a way to maintain the occupation in large sections of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, with the Palestinian "self-government" filling the role of an auxiliary security agency protecting Israel and the settlements.
64. Since the final aim was not defined, the Oslo agreement did not mark the beginning of the process to end the conflict but, rather, a new phase of the conflict.
65. Because the expectations of both sides were so divergent and each remained entirely bound to its own national "narrative," every section of the agreement was interpreted differently. Ultimately, many parts of the agreement were left unimplemented, mainly by Israel (for example, the third withdrawal and the four safe passages between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip).
66. Throughout the period of the "Oslo Process," Israel continued its vigorous expansion of the settlements, primarily by creating new settlements under various guises, expanding existing ones,
building an elaborate network of "bypass" roads, expropriating land, demolishing houses, uprooting plantations and other
measures. The Palestinians, for their part, used the time to build up their strength, both within the framework of the agreement and outside it. In fact, the historical confrontation continued unabated under the guise of negotiations and the "peace process," which became a substitute for actual peace.
67. In contradiction to his image, which was cultivated extensively