On Tuesday, the American Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, criticized Israeli colonization during a visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories, speaking of Washington’s “new ideas” concerning the advancement of the laborious peace process.
“I think it’s no secret, and I’ve said it to my Israeli counterparts, that I don’t think the settlement activity is helpful to the [peace] process,” Ms. Rice affirmed during a joint press conference in Jerusalem with Tzipi Livni, her Israeli counterpart.
“What we need now are steps that enhance confidence between the parties, and anything that undermines confidence between the parties ought to be avoided,” she added.
Mrs. Livni, on the other hand, suggested that “the peace process is not and should not be affected by any kind of settlement activities.” “The Israeli government policy is not to expand settlements; it is not to build new settlements, and not to confiscate land from Palestinians,” she affirmed.
The anti-colonization movement “Peace Now” indicated in a report published on Tuesday that housing construction in West Bank colonies practically doubled since the beginning of 2008 when compared to the same period in 2007, with 433 houses being in construction at the moment.
Mrs. Rice also met PM Ehud Olmert for the first time since–after having been implicated in a corruption scandal–he announced in late July his intention to retire from office.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whom she then met in Ramallah in the West Bank, said that colonization is “undoubtedly a main obstacle” on the way to peace, while suggesting that the negotiations taking place with Israel could still lead to an agreement.
“These efforts haven’t been for nothing. We would have stopped it if it was pointless. There are benefits that I hope will show in the future,” he said to the press.
According to his spokesman Nabil Abou Roudeina, Mr. Abbas and Ms. Rice explored “new ideas” likely to move negotiations forward.
“New ideas, which the US administration has presented for the first time, were discussed during the meeting between Abbas and Secretary of State Rice,” he said to the AFP.
“The coming weeks will be decisive for the peace process. We are at a crossroads and the efforts and the meetings will continue in order to build on the ideas presented for the first time today,” he added, with no further clarification.
A senior Palestinian official, who asked not to be identified, told the AFP that the Palestinians, the Israelis and the US administration hope to agree on a “common document” that could be made public by US President George W Bush at a planned meeting with Abbas in New York on September 21.
The Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations which began in Annapolis, in November 2007, and were planned to reach a conclusion by the end of the current year, have still not made any significant advances, in particular due to the continuing Jewish colonization in the West Bank and in the Jerusalem region.
This was Secretary Rice’s 18th visit in the region in the past two years, and her 7th since the peace negotiations in Annapolis.
Shortly before her arrival on Monday, Israel liberated 198 Palestinian prisoners, two of which were among the longest-serving, as a gesture towards Abbas. Ms. Rice lauded this decision, calling it a “significant step forward.”
She flew out to Washington after her meeting with Mr. Abbas.
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