To commemorate the Madrid Peace Conference and mark its 15th anniversary, a group of 100 officials and peace workers will today start a two-day meeting in Madrid to discuss a fresh perspective for peace between Arabs and Israel.John Marks, President of Search for Common Ground, one of five international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) which called for the conference, said the idea may appear strange but is meant to build up on the signals that are coming from both Israel and Syria.
He said the Madrid +15 Conference had nothing to do with celebrating an event that took place in the past, but was creating a tool to bring people who are currently at odds together to discuss peace.
He said influential figures in their individual capacities from Syria, the USA, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Russia and the GCC will gather to highlight that it is possible for all sides to meet and examine the issues soberly and constructively.
However, the largest delegation has come from Israel with 11 members, while Syria which has issued signals of willingness to discuss peace with Israel, has a low profile representation with two veteran diplomats in the Madrid +15 conference. When the Madrid Peace Conference was initiated in 1991 in the wake of the Kuwaiti liberation war, Egypt was the only Arab country that signed a Camp David peace agreement with the Jewish state.