Powell, Rice Say Arab Support for Roadmap Is Growing

(U.S. envisions Israel as "Jewish state," alongside "contiguous"


Palestinian state) (540)


By Steve Kaufman


Washington File Staff Writer





Washington -- Secretary of State Colin Powell and National Security


Advisor Condoleezza Rice said President Bush received a "new


commitment to end terror and violence" from Arab leaders at a meeting


at the Egyptian seaport of Sharm El-Sheikh June 3, indicating that


support for the Middle East road map will continue to grow.





Powell and Rice spoke to the press June 3 in Sharm El-Shiekh, Egypt,


following the president's meetings with Egyptian President Hosni


Mubarak, Jordan's King Abdullah, Saudi Crown Prince Abdallah bin


Abdulaziz, Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, and Palestinian


Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas.





Powell repeated that, as part of a peaceful resolution to the


Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the United States envisions Israel as a


"Jewish state," alongside a "contiguous" Palestinian state.





Israel, he said, "must be always seen as a Jewish state. That has


implications, as we go forward, as to how we will negotiate some of


the difficult issues that remain in front of us."





Powell said a future Palestinian state "has to have contiguity."





"It has to be connected. It has to have means of moving about within


that state. So it can't be chopped in so many ways in some form of


Bantustan. That -- it would not really be as an honest effort to


provide a state for the Palestinian people," said Powell.





Powell said that there are "many difficult issues" to be discussed


between the two parties, such as the status of Jerusalem, the


Palestinian right of return and Israeli settlements, "but what we had


to do was to get started" on what he described as a long journey with


"many phases to it."





Powell and Rice said there were new conditions in the region since the


failed 2001 Camp David meetings that brighten the prospects for peace


-- the end of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq, regional economic


efforts, such as President Bush's proposal for a Middle East Free


Trade Area, and the appointment of the new Palestinian Prime Minister,


Mahmoud Abbas.





Rice said Abbas "is devoted to fighting terror," and "has said that a


Palestinian state needs to be built on the rule of law and that


violence and terrorism are inconsistent with that."





Rice also said that Arab states had been brought into the process "at


the front end, in a way that they have not been before," and said


their statement against terrorism is "also an important condition that


I think gives us some hope that we can resolve, over time, with,


undoubtedly, bumps along the road, this very difficult and


long-standing problem."





Rice said it was important that the Arab leaders' statement said that


motivation and justification for terrorist activity "does not matter,


that terrorism is still unacceptable."





Powell said that during meetings with Saudi officials, the Bush


administration was informed of actions that would be taken to ensure


that charitable contributions would not be diverted to terrorist or


other improper use. Powell also praised Palestinian Finance Minister


Fayyad for bringing "accountability to the finances of the Palestinian


Authority."