Talks underway in Gaza, possibility of an Olympic truce… Bruno Tertrais’s “8h30 franceinfo”

The deputy director of the Foundation for Strategic Research and geopolitical advisor at the Institut Montaigne was the guest of “8h30 franceinfo”, Wednesday May 8, 2024.

Bruno Tertrais, deputy director of the Foundation for Strategic Research and geopolitical advisor at the Montaigne Institute, was the guest of “8h30 franceinfo”, Wednesday May 8, 2024. Hopes for a ceasefire in the Middle East, possibility of an Olympic truce on all war fronts… He answered questions from Jean-Rémi Baudot and Agathe Lambret.

“It could be a real ceasefire, but temporary”

While new talks are underway Wednesday morning in Cairo and Hamas accepted a first truce proposal on Monday, Bruno Tertrais believes that “it could be a real ceasefire, but temporary”.

The geopolitics expert recalls, however, that the objectives of the two parties are not the same. Israel pushes for one “lasting calm”while Hamas has, for weeks, been calling for a definitive truce with an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza: “The notion of a total cessation of fighting is today, in my opinion, unacceptable for Israel which has decided to go to the end, not to leave the work, these are the words that are used, unfinished”explains Bruno Tertrais.

“From the moment the Israeli army entered Gaza in October, I personally had no doubt that they would go through with it.”

Bruno Tertrais

at franceinfo

According to him, Israel’s strategy remains the same: “Reduce as much as possible what Hamas is”. “It’s a dynamic that we saw a little after September 11 in the United States”he emphasizes.

🔴Two-state solution in Gaza ➡️ “I think we’re not there yet, we already know that it won’t be Hamas or Israel,” analyzes Bruno Tertrais. pic.twitter.com/4oFOkH7gzK

— franceinfo (@franceinfo) May 8, 2024

“The very notion of an Olympic truce is a vast joke”

The United States is trying to put pressure on Israel in order to curb the military ardor of the Jewish state which entered Rafah on Tuesday. The Israeli army bombarded the area as more than a million Gazans took refuge in the south of the Gaza Strip. “Israel, rightly or wrongly, believes that it is at an existential challenge for itself. Therefore, we can always say that we can always put more pressure, but I am not sure that it is really feasible”believes Bruno Tertrais.

🔴Visit of Xi Jinping to France ➡️ “Call for the Olympic truce [vis-à-vis du conflit en Ukraine], it’s almost obscene. Those who are calling for this truce know very well that it has absolutely no chance of having an impact,” says Bruno Tertrais. pic.twitter.com/sZbl4GAVML

— franceinfo (@franceinfo) May 8, 2024

He also very doubts the feasibility of a possible Olympic truce that Emmanuel Macron once again called for during a press conference alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping: “The very notion of an Olympic truce is a vast joke. It is even almost cynical. Frankly, calling for an Olympic truce is almost obscene. Those who call for this truce know very well that it has absolutely no chance of ‘to have an impact”says Bruno Tertrais.

Find the entire “8:30 a.m. franceinfo” from Wednesday May 8, 2024: