Monday representatives of the European Union and the United States will sit down in Washington to discuss their greater Middle East plans. That's right. They both have a plan. And naturally, they both think their Middle East plan is greater than the others Read about it here.

I wouldn't doubt the EU's High Representative is a little irritated by all this. Why? Well, if you recall, this was all his idea in the first place. But he called it his "Wider Middle East" plan. Now President George W. Bush is trying to pick it up, change its name, and call the plan his. 

Like I said, I don't think Solana appreciates Bush's move. However, he's got to live with it. So, Solana will be in Washington Monday trying to convince President Bush the best hope for peace in the Middle East is his plan.

What is the difference? For one thing, the US plan calls for not only imposing democratic governments throughout the entire Middle East, it also calls for doing the same in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Solana's plan, on the other hand, concentrates only on the Middle East region and builds on existing agreements whose foundations are the Barcelona Process he negotiated in 1995.

So these two great powers will be meeting Monday to see who's greater Middle East plan it will be -- Bush's or Solana's.

In the mean time, Israel is watching. And from Israel's perspective, it's like watching two great beasts arguing over which one will devour her.

Sad, isn't it?