Barack Obama, who wants to be a transformative president like his role model, Abraham Lincoln, could do worse to deserve the Nobel Peace Prize that he received prematurely than to facilitate a comprehensive Middle East peace settlement. Few expect such a colossal achievement, of course, but far fewer expect anything remotely similar from Catherine Ashton, the EU’s foreign policy czarina, or, for that matter, any European leader.
比如，如果以色列-巴勒斯坦冲突仍能够解决的话，那么解决方案只有寄希望于美国的强力参与。奥巴马希望和他的偶像林肯一样成为划时代总统更有可能为他过早获得的诺贝尔和平奖抹上污点，而不是促成全面的中东和解。当然，没多少人会期待能够完成这一伟大成就，但期待欧盟外交政策女皇凯瑟琳·阿什顿（Catherine Ashton）或其他欧洲人完成这一伟大成就的人显然更少。