Rice: Time for a Palestinian State
CBNNews.com
October 15, 2007
CBNNews.com - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Israelis and Palestinians are making a "serious effort" to resolve their conflict.
In a strong statement, Rice said that a Palestinian state is a key U.S. interest. She urged the two sides to drop contentious demands and reach consensus on a substantive joint statement ahead of the international conference.
"Frankly, it's time for the establishment of a Palestinian state," Rice said Monday, her second day of a four-day intense Middle East shuttle diplomacy mission.
"The United States sees the establishment of a Palestinian state and a two-state solution as absolutely essential for the future, not just of Palestinians and Israelis but also for the Middle East and indeed to American interests," she said.
Secretary Rice is hoping face-to-face meetings this week will bring some agreement between Israeli and Palestinian leaders before next month's peace summit.
But the Palestinians have demanded a completed outline for peace prior to the summit - a plan the Israelis oppose.
Secretary Rice downplayed expecting any major breakthroughs from the talks. She said two key countries are keeping the region unstable.
"Clearly in the case of Iran and Syria, you have states that are engaged in destabilizing behavior in one of the world's most volatile regions," she said.
One state department official hinted the peace summit could be postponed because of differences between the Israelis and Palestinians.
Sunday Meetings
At Sunday's Cabinet meeting, Israeli Prime Minister Olmert told his ministers that a joint statement with the Palestinians was not and never had been a prerequisite for the November conference. He later repeated those remarks during his meeting with the Secretary Rice.
Meanwhile, acting PA Foreign Minister Riad Malki said that without the coveted joint declaration addressing "core issues," there would be no PA delegation at the conference.
"Without a document to resolve this conflict, we can't go to the conference next month," Malki said. "Olmert is looking for a public relations conference and one that will allow normalization with Arab countries. We will not help him in this."
But as closely as the Olmert government has worked with the Bush administration toward the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, Israel is finding itself unable to meet the ever-expanding, all-or-nothing demands of the PA government.
Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who met with Rice before leaving for meetings with senior Bush administration officials, including Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Robert Gates, said Israel cannot compromise its security by relinquishing its presence in Judea and Samaria.
Barak said freedom of movement for the Israel Defense Forces in Judea and Samaria is a "fundamental principle that must be demanded in the future as well."
On Sunday, Olmert announced that Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni would head the Israeli delegation at the peace conference.
The foreign minister has developed a close working relationship with Secretary Rice over the past year.
Source: The Jerusalem Post, The Associated Press, CBN News
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