Posted on 01/10/2005 8:29:14 AM PST by IAF ThunderPilot
U.S. President George W. Bush said Monday he would welcome newly elected Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to the White House, extending an invitation he refused to offer to the late Yasser Arafat.
Bush said he was heartened by the Palestinian elections and offered his congratulations to Abbas, who was elected by a landslide.
"I look forward to welcoming him here to Washington if he chooses to come here," the president said, talking with reporters in the Oval Office.
The U.S. president also said on Monday that Israel must continue to support the vision of a two-state solution, meet its obligations, and pull out of the territories, Israel Radio reported.
European countries also welcomed Abbas' election as a sign Palestinians want to reform their government and find a negotiated solution with Israel.
French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier said the peaceful vote was "a victory for democracy, a first victory for peace."
"No incident, a strong turnout: It's a proof of responsibility and maturity that the Palestinians have given," Barnier was quoted as telling French daily newspaper Le Parisien.
Barnier said the new president's first task "will be to reorganize the services of the Palestinian Authority as Yasser Arafat promised to do, in order to increase security guarantees for the Palestinians as well as for Israel."
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said his country and other European nations would do everything possible to help Abbas create an "independent, viable and democratic" Palestinian state.
"I trust that the Palestinian people will follow the path you have chosen of renouncing violence and carrying out comprehensive reforms," Schroeder wrote in a telegram to Abbas, whom he invited to visit Germany.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also sent a message to the Palestinian leader, looking forward to cooperation on achieving "a just Palestinian-Israeli settlement on the basis of the Road Map (peace plan) and resolutions of the UN Security Council..
"I am sure that your example of political experience will permit you to effectively perform the lofty mission entrusted to you by the Palestinian people," Putin wrote, according to his press office.
British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw congratulated Abbas after he won a landslide victory in the vote to replace the late Yasser Arafat, who led the Palestinian movement for four decades.
"The Palestinian people have already demonstrated their commitment to democracy," Straw told a news conference. "The challenge now is for the new president to use his mandate to lay the foundations for a new Palestinian state."
British Prime Minister Tony Blair planned to speak to Abbas by phone later Monday, Blair's official spokesman said. The two politicians met last month in Ramallah to discuss a March 1-2 conference in London on rebuilding Palestinian institutions.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said the Abbas victory "adds to the credibility of the peace process."
"The elections went well. We await the final outcome" that pivots on a 'Road Map' peace plan drawn up by the United States, the EU, Russia and the United Nations, said Barroso.
The EU deployed some 200 election observers for the Palestinian vote in its largest election monitoring program ever. The operation cost $18.3 million.
Austria's foreign minister, Ursula Plassnik, called Abbas' election "an encouraging step toward peace" in the Middle East.
International affairs expert Rime Allaf in London predicted that Abbas' victory would do little to increase the European Union's role in resolving the Middle East conflict, after years of being sidelined by Israel and the United States.
"The only new thing that Abbas brings for the Europeans is the chance to tell the United States and Israel that they have lost their excuse for not talking with the Palestinians, i.e. Arafat," said Allaf, an associate fellow at the Chatham House think-tank, which is also known as the Royal Institute of International Affairs.
"Pretty much all they can do is pressure the United States to be more equitable," Allaf added.
Abbas' victory was front-page news on each of Spain's dailies and the lead item on radio and TV news.
"The good sense of the Palestinians has won," the conservative daily ABC said in an editorial Monday. "The victory of Mahmoud Abbas by such a wide margin of votes over his opponents, and the failure of the boycott by radical groups who tried to sabotage the elections, opens up a scenario of hope and possibilities for a people in need of peace and stability."
The Times of London said that Abbas, a pragmatist, understood the importance of ending Palestinian violence before talks with Israel can begin.
"He must make clear that there will be no further Arafat-style fudges, making token arrests and cracking down for a few days only to release the militants when the immediate crisis has passed," the paper wrote. But it also urged Israel to improve conditions for Palestinians in the occupied territories.
The Guardian, another British daily, said the "new president has a mountain to climb" in tackling the many Palestinians who back Hamas.
I wouldn't get all warm and fuzzy about this, Barnier. There is no such "proof." I would not be surprised if Abbas showed up at the White House. Most Americans would very much like to see the Palis stop blowing up Israelis and if this helps, fine. My major concern right now is that the murders will continue and everyone will say we need to give Abbas a chance to try and control his people and this will go on for a while until it becomes clear that we have another Arafat on our hands. I wonder what we'll do then.
"keep your friends close, and your enemies closer"
Been there, done that. This is his second visit as Prime Minister.
His answer to your question was that he’ll talk to the terrorists, but he won’t confront them with force. And that Israel must immediately return to the 49 borders and allow 4,000,000 Muslim Arabs to move in. Same as his electoral platform.
Maybe he can make his case more forcefully to GWB this time.
He's already met with GWB. If that were true, he would have lost the election.
"Feh! Bush doesn't speak for many Americans. I wouldn't invite Abbas to a sewer-cleaning contest. I expect Bush and Company will start putting real pressure on Israel. This looks too much like Munich in 1938."
Bush will not pressure Israel, especially when he is fighting a war on terror.
Bush is going to be his usual grownup self and let Abbas know that the Palis have about as good a chance of pushing Israel into the sea as Hillary has of winning in 08. If Abbas cracks down, the financial floodgates will open. If not, the Palis will not receive US support.
And I don't think anyone will go against Bush on this.
I only wish that Bush had waited for Abbas to do something to earn a visit to the Whitehouse. At this point Abbas is just an Arafat Clone. He has given us some 'assurances' but conferring to him this legitimacy is a repeat of the clinton mistake.
If Abbas stops the suicide/homicide bombers, the rocket attacks, etc., then maybe you can deal with him. Otherwise, it's the sos, just a different day.
5.56mm
Another career arab muslim terrorist is invited to the White House.
The only outcome will be pleasing arab terrorists and muslim terrorists around the planet.
Good call.
I wouldn't go quite that far...
"No incident, a strong turnout: It's a proof of responsibility and maturity that the Palestinians have given," Barnier was quoted as telling French daily newspaper Le Parisien.
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No.... it reflects the 20 million dollar cash bribe Bush gave Abbas right after arabrat's death and the promise of hundreds of millions more. Every year.
That's right, President Bush gave $20 million in CASH to the head of the infamous arab muslim terror group the PLO, killers of Americans and Jews.
But it's for PEACE, so it's okay.
I agree that there is probably not much difference in these men. However I do think it is agood idea to have a dialog with the man, I thought that Bush should have also at least met with Arafat. Devil though he may have been he was the leader of his people, and they were/are in conflict with Israel. I don't see how shutting him out completly did anyone any good
He should invite him down to Texas and introduce him to some rattlesnakes - up close.
This could be referred to as a pre emptive strike on his critics who will be quick to whine he didn't 'properly acknowledge' this hopeful? sign. Bush is simply reaching out. Not a bad thing since it puts the onus on Abbas and he must react. The world is watching.
President Bush is leading us in WW IV against global terrorism and he is doing a magnificent job.
My opinion is I don't like it at all, but I can see why he did it---
He met with him before when he and Abbas and Sharon were discussing the original "Road to Peace" road map. He should at least "feel him out" privately to see how interested he is in cooperating in a "two state" solution.
I saw the thread today where Abbas has said "we just had a small jihad, now it is time for the big Jihad!" That doesn't bode well, and I believe he is an Arafat protoge, but it wouldn't so Bush any good at this point to treat him like Arafat----
For me, the first indication of Bush's appeasement or capitulation to Abbas is whether he will stand up for Israel's right to have the fence stay up---it HAS TO STAY UP and if Bush doesn't emphasize that, I will lose total faith in his policy.
I despise Abbas, but I'm willing to see what happens during the visit before making a judgement. It's not necessarily a bad idea on a number of fronts.
1) Bush will have a chance to directly explain what he expects.
2) It will blunt criticism that Bush has been neglectful of the Paleotinian Arabs.
This could be referred to as a pre emptive strike on his critics who will be quick to whine he didn't 'properly acknowledge' this hopeful? sign. Bush is simply reaching out. Not a bad thing since it puts the onus on Abbas and he must react. The world is watching.
I Hope You're Right
With Arafat too, everyone was glad to meet with him in the 1990s.
There was a window of opportunity.
There was a partner.
We were told not to listen to what he said, as he was doing that to please Hamas.
That there was a political solution to terrorists.
Now all this begins with Abu Mazen. As they say in Israel - there is nothing new under the sun.
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