The Obama administration has wisely tapped two veteran peacemakers to assist with the world's trouble spots.
George J. Mitchell, 75, the former federal judge and Senate majority leader who brokered Northern Ireland's Good Friday agreement in 1998, will be the State Department's special envoy for Arab-Israeli affairs. Acting as special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan will be Richard C. Holbrooke, 67, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, whose efforts ended the Bosnia war in 1995.
The two men are tough, principled negotiators who understand the power of diplomacy, the danger of appeasement, and the difficulties ahead. Here's what Mitchell said when accepting Philadelphia's Liberty Medal in 1998: "I believe there's no such thing as a conflict that can't be ended. They're created and sustained by human beings. They can be ended by human beings. No matter how ancient the conflict, no matter how hateful, no matter how hurtful, peace can prevail. . . . Seeking an end to conflict is not for the timid or the tentative. There must be a clear and determined policy not to yield to the men of violence."
Having two strong-minded foreign-policy heavyweights, either of whom could easily have been secretary of state, working for the newly confirmed Hillary Clinton could cause some in-house jockeying for position. In fact, the announced chain of command will almost ensure it. Mitchell will report to Clinton. Holbrooke will, too, but he will also at times represent President Obama, the Pentagon, and the National Security Council, where Gen. James L. Jones intends to play a key role on Afghanistan and Pakistan.
But Clinton seemed eager to allay such concerns when she said last week, "We are a team."
No doubt the peacemakers will act accordingly.