Bush heads to Middle East Tue May 13, 6:29 PM ET
WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President George W. Bush left for the Middle East on Tuesday, fresh from warning Syria and Iran over unrest in Lebanon and hoping to push ahead with Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts. Bush waved to well-wishers as he departed the White House, where officials warned against expecting any breakthroughs in sluggish efforts to end the conflict amid deadly turmoil in the region.The US president's May 13-18 trip was anchored on the 60th anniversary of the modern state of Israel, and included subsequent stops in Saudi Arabia to mark 75 years of diplomatic ties, and in Egypt.On the eve of the visit, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said real progress had been made in talks with the Palestinians and understandings and agreements have been reached on very important matters.The discussions we are conducting with the Palestinian Authority are serious and very significant, Olmert said.We are making real progress and understandings and agreements have been reached on very important matters, although not on all of them.
Olmert is caught in a political storm amid official warnings that he is suspected of corruption, while Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas appears unlikely to be able to win divided Palestinians over to concessions key to any final deal.In neighboring Lebanon, Hezbollah staged a show of force that led the United States to denounce the militant Shiite group and warn its historic backers, Syria and Iran, that they would be held accountable.We will continue working hard, and I do believe we can get a state defined by the end of my presidency, in January 2009, Bush told Israeli television.A state won't exist until certain obligations are met by everybody, but to have it defined is very important, he said.Olmert and Abbas agreed at a US-sponsored conference in Annapolis, Maryland, in November to forge an agreement by year's end shaping the contours of a future Palestinian state.In the subsequent six months, the optimism of the meeting has given way to skepticism over efforts to resolve a conflict old as Israel itself.We don't anticipate any major breakthroughs, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said Tuesday. While it's exceedingly difficult, it's not impossible.Olmert said he hoped a comprehensive agreement could be reached with the Palestinians, although he gave no timeframe.I hope an agreement between us will be reached, the realization of which will be gradual and in accordance with the roadmap, he said.The roadmap is a five-year-old internationally drafted peace blueprint which sets out a phased path to peace starting with an Israeli commitment to halt settlement expansion in the occupied territories and a Palestinian commitment to improve security.The Israeli government has made clear that it wants to retain sovereignty over major Jewish settlement blocs in the occupied West Bank, including annexed Arab east Jerusalem, under any peace deal.
Another major obstacle is Hamas's control of the Gaza Strip, launch site for frequent rocket or mortar attacks on Israel, which the Palestinian militant group does not recognize. Peace negotiations with Syria have been frozen for the past seven years after Israel balked at Damscus's demands for the return of the whole of the strategic Golan Heights right down to the shores of the Sea of Galilee -- Israel's main water source. The visit is Bush's second in four months -- after seven years in which he did not set foot in either Israel or the Palestinian territories -- amid hopes a peace deal will shore up his legacy. The vision of a (Palestinian) state is such a powerful notion and such an important notion for Israel's very existence, that I do believe that we have a chance to get something defined, Bush told reporters on the eve of the trip.
However, he added he will come not as somebody who demands, but somebody who encourages.
Olmert says understandings reached in peace talks By Adam Entous and Ari Rabinovitch Tue May 13, 2:53 PM ET
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Tuesday he and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had reached understandings and points of agreement on some key issues in U.S-backed peace talks. Olmert gave no details. Faced with a police bribery investigation that could force him from office, Olmert is keen to show progress in the talks during this week's visit by U.S. President George W. Bush.His assertion that some agreements have been reached ran counter to recent statements by top Palestinian officials.Our talks with the Palestinian Authority are serious and significant, Olmert said in a speech to visiting world leaders on the eve of Bush's arrival.There has been significant progress, and understandings and points of agreement have been reached in important matters, but not on all the issues, Olmert said.Olmert did not elaborate on the points of agreement but said: The biggest and most important challenge before the state of Israel, which will determine its future, is the challenge of determining permanent borders.Israeli officials said last week that progress was being made on defining the borders of a future Palestinian state but not on the thornier issues of Jerusalem or Palestinian refugees.
Palestinian negotiators have described recent talks between Olmert and Abbas as serious but they said no agreements have been reached on any of the core issues.I do believe we can get a state defined by the end of my presidency, Bush told Israel's Channel 10 ahead of his arrival on Wednesday to mark the country's 60th anniversary.A state won't exist until certain obligations are met by everybody, he said. Defining what that state would look like was very important, he added.During his visit in January, Bush said he believed Israel would sign a peace treaty with the Palestinians in 2008.The negotiations, launched in November with the goal of reaching some sort of statehood agreement before Bush leaves office in January, have been marred by disputes over Israel's settlement expansion and campaign against militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.Olmert admitted last week he took cash from an American businessman at the centre of the police investigation, but he has denied any wrongdoing. Olmert said he would resign if indicted.
Progress in the peace negotiations could influence Israel's attorney general in deciding whether to bring charges that could unseat Olmert and likely derail the talks.Abbas's authority has been limited to the occupied West Bank since Hamas Islamists seized the Gaza Strip last June.(Editing by Robert Woodward)
Israel to ease some West Bank restrictions: Blair Tue May 13, 9:45 AM ET
JERUSALEM (AFP) - Israel has agreed to remove some checkpoints across the occupied West Bank in a bid to ease Palestinian travel restrictions, Middle East Quartet envoy Tony Blair said on Tuesday.
Four checkpoints will be removed, seven will be significantly improved to ease the flow of traffic and one will be moved to another location, the former British premier told a news conference in Jerusalem.The government of Israel has agreed to do so, subject to a continuous secrurity assessment, said Blair, representative of the diplomatic Quartet made up of the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations.Israel has come under pressure from to ease restrictions in the West Bank in a bid to help advance peace negotiations revived at a US conference in November.Blair said one roadblock would be removed within a week and the others at a later stage.The Israeli government also agreed to ease some trade restrictions as part of a package designed to allow greater movement of people and goods, helping the Palestinian economy grow, and its people achieve increased prosperity in a way consistent with protecting fully the security of Israel, Blair said.
Israel and the government of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas further agreed on the creation of an economic and security zone around the West Bank city of Jenin.All roadblocks will be lifted in the test area, and Israel will issue an additional 1,000 permits to allow residents to work in the Jewish state, and 300 Jenin traders will be given access to Israel, Blair said.Palestinian security forces will be in control of security in the area, while Israel reserves the right to act when its security is at risk, he said, adding that the idea would be to extend the project to the whole West Bank if it works.The proposals were welcomed by the World Bank, which recently said that since 2000 the Palestinian economy went from one driven by investment and private sector productivity to one sustained by aid and government spending, partly as a result of the travel restrictions.These proposals are a very good step in the right direction and represent a welcome change in approach, said David Craig, country director for the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.In themselves, they will contribute to the building of confidence. If scaled up, they have the potential to start a virtuous cycle of growth in the West Bank.
Obama promises no let-up in support for Israel Mon May 12, 6:21 PM ET
WASHINGTON (AFP) - Democratic White House hopeful Barack Obama on Monday promised no let-up in US support for Israel, after his Republican foe repeatedly claimed he is the favored pick of the Islamist movement Hamas. You will not see, under my presidency, any slackening in commitment to Israel's security, Obama said in an interview with The Atlantic magazine online.My position on Hamas is indistinguishable from the position of Hillary Clinton or John McCain. I said they are a terrorist organization and I've repeatedly condemned them, Obama said.I mean what I say: since they are a terrorist organization, we should not be dealing with them until they recognize Israel, renounce terrorism.An informal advisor to Obama's campaign stepped down last week after a British newspaper inquired about his contacts with Hamas.The advisor explained that his paid job with the International Crisis Group required him to have such contacts and he did not want those associations to reflect negatively on Obama's campaign.McCain, the likely Republican nominee, has repeated the assertion that Hamas supports Obama, while painting himself in contrast as a candidate who would be tougher on groups considered terrorists by the United States.The Illinois senator, who is the son of a Kenyan father and white American mother, acknowledged that the portions of his childhood he spent outside the United States could lead to the perception that he is more worldly than President George W. Bush.
It's conceivable that there are those in the Arab world who say to themselves, 'This is a guy who spent some time in the Muslim world, has a middle name of Hussein, and appears more worldly and has called for talks with people, and so he's not going to be engaging in the same sort of cowboy diplomacy as George Bush,' and that's something they're hopeful about.I think that's a perfectly legitimate perception as long as they're not confused about my unyielding support for Israel's security.He added that he had made his position clear during a visit with Palestinian students in Ramallah.One of the things that I said to those students was: 'Look, I am sympathetic to you and the need for you guys to have a country that can function, but understand this: If you're waiting for America to distance itself from Israel, you are delusional.Because my commitment, our commitment, to Israel's security is non-negotiable.Obama has also condemned the recent meeting between Democratic former president Jimmy Carter and Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal in Damascus.During the campaign, he sparked controversy by saying he was ready to meet with Iranian, Cuban or North Korea leaders if he is elected president, but said he would not meet with the leaders of Hamas.McCain's campaign has said it never suggested that Senator Obama supports Hamas' agenda but said it was more than fair to raise comments by a senior Hamas aide that the movement hoped the Democrat would win the election.The Republican's campaign cited a quote from April 13, in which Hamas aide Ahmed Yousef reportedly said: We like Mr. Obama. We hope he will (win) the election.And I do believe he is like John Kennedy, great man with great principle, and he has a vision to change America to make it in a position to lead the world community but not with domination and arrogance. In a conversation with conservative bloggers last month, McCain said it was very clear who Hamas wants to be the next president, adding: If Senator Obama is favored by Hamas I think people can make judgments accordingly.
Canada blasts Hezbollah for Lebanon unrest Mon May 12, 4:18 PM ET
OTTAWA (AFP) - Foreign Minister Maxime Bernier on Monday blamed Hezbollah for clashes between supporters of Lebanon's Western-backed government and militants loyal to the Shiite-led opposition.
We are supporting the Lebanese government and we hope that peace and security will come back to Lebanon, Bernier told parliament. And we strongly condemn this irresponsible action on the part of Hezbollah.Six days of sectarian battles have left at least 61 people dead and nearly 200 wounded, in the worst internal unrest since the 1975-1990 civil war.The violence erupted after the government said it would investigate a Hezbollah telephone network and reassign the airport security chief over his alleged links to the Shiite militant group Hezbollah.
Bush calls Iran 'single biggest threat' to Mideast peace Mon May 12, 2:13 PM ET
JERUSALEM (AFP) - US President George W. Bush on Monday called Iran the single biggest threat to peace in the Middle East ahead of a visit to the region centered on celebrations of Israel's 60th anniversary. To me it's the single biggest threat to peace in the Middle East, the Iranian regime, because of its nuclear programme and its support of groups like the Lebanese Hezbollah militia, Bush told Israel's Channel 10.Their funding of Hezbollah -- look what's happening in Lebanon now, a young democracy trying to survive, Bush said in excerpts of an interview to be broadcast in its entirety on Tuesday.In recent days Lebanon has been driven to the brink of civil war after days of deadly sectarian street clashes between the Shiite Hezbollah and its allies and Sunni Muslim supporters of the US-backed government.By the way it's in Israel's interest that the Lebanese democracy survives. You need to be concerned about Iran and you are concerned about Iran and so are we, Bush said.The US and Israel accuse Iran of pursuing nuclear weapons and Israel has considered the Islamic republic its greatest strategic threat in the wake of repeated statements by its president predicting the Jewish state's demise.
Iran insists its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful.
Bush was due to meet Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Wednesday at the start of a five-day trip anchored on Israel's 60th anniversary celebrations and aimed at bolstering US-backed Middle East peace talks launched in November.Bush declined to comment on a major corruption investigation recently launched against the beleaguered Israeli premier, saying only that he has great relations with the prime minister.I find him to be a frank man and an honest man and an open man, Bush said.Olmert is suspected of having received funds illegally from a US businessman before he became premier in 2006.
