Posted on 10/25/2005 2:34:30 PM PDT by andyk
OTTAWA -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice suggested Tuesday that Israel must loosen controls at border crossings to allow freer passage for Palestinians and economic development in areas that would one day be an independent Palestinian state.
Rice spoke in the Canadian capital a day after reports that a top Mideast envoy had criticized Israel for moving too slowly on negotiations to open borders around the Gaza Strip.
Israel withdrew troops and settlers from Gaza over the summer after nearly 30 years. The territory, now under Palestinian control, is on the other side of Israel from the larger Palestinian-controlled areas of the West Bank, and Palestinians must cross Israel or go through Egypt to pass between the two areas.
"It is very clear that the crossings issues need to get resolved," Rice said.
She did not specifically call on Israel to change its border policies, but did not dispute the findings of envoy James Wolfensohn that Israel was stalling in the restoration of movement across the borders.
Wolfensohn, the former World Bank president now working as a special envoy on behalf of the United States and other foreign mediators, said the delay was preventing him from moving on to larger reconstruction efforts, such as tourism, agriculture and industrial projects.
Borders "need to get freed up so that the kind of economic program we all want to see in the Palestinian territories" can begin, Rice said.
Wolfensohn is "simply asking the parties to do everything they can now that the Israelis are out of the Gaza to make sure that the Gaza is going to be a place where Palestinians can see a different kind of life and therefore start to build the foundations for a Palestinian state," she said.
In an Oct. 17 letter to the U.N. secretary-general obtained by The Associated Press, Wolfensohn said Israel was behaving almost as if the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip never happened.
Without dramatic progress soon, a rare chance to revive Gaza's shattered economy - and the peace process - will be lost, he said.
Israel closed the Rafah crossing into Egypt, Gaza's main link to the outside world, shortly before it withdrew from Gaza. It also has severely restricted the passage of Palestinian laborers and goods in and out of Israel, the main Palestinian export market, since a wave of rocket attacks right after the pullout.
Israeli officials say the measures are solely because of security considerations.
Wolfensohn acknowledged such concerns but said Israel and the Palestinians should be able to quickly resolve differences over borders.
On another subject, Rice said in Canada that the United States wants to resolve a long-standing trade dispute over Canadian lumber.
Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin said Monday he was willing to negotiate a lumber agreement if Washington returned $3.5 billion in contested duties, and he threatened to sue if the United States wouldn't budge.
"I think it's extremely important not to speak in apocalyptic language on this," Rice said at a press conference with Canadian Foreign Minister Pierre Pettigrew.
Pettigrew blamed the U.S. timber industry for pressuring the Bush administration.
"It is a very tough lobby. You have my sympathies, Condi," Pettigrew said.
Rice smiled but did not respond.
The United States accuses Canada of sending millions of board feet of lumber from government-owned timberlands across the border at low prices, making it tough for U.S. companies to compete.
North American Free Trade Agreement panels ruled in favor of Canada and said $3.5 billion in U.S. tariffs and duties collected on Canadian lumber were not justified. The United States claims the tariffs are legal.
They're all Arabists over there and the chief Arabist? Poppy's old buddy James A. Baker III (They don't vote for us anyway so F* 'em)
I don't mix political discussions with my religion.
Rice should keep her safe and secure mouth shut.
When the Hamas Palestinian terrorists are all dead, then Israel maybe can THINK about its borders.
Justice is harder to achieve than control. Maybe the "neocons" now figure that they can control the ME more easily if Israel slowly disappears?
As an American citizen, I say to Israel: Ignore Rice and Bush. You have more than proven your good faith by pulling out of Gaza and yet you received no credit from the international community, including the USA. Build your wall, tighten your borders (maybe Rice and Bush will learn something), and never, ever, ever give in to the terrorists and their protectors.
If the Jews hadn't left behind those synagogues to tempt the young arabs into violence... how could they have been expected to remain calm when confronted with those symbols of all they despise?
(end sarc)
I USED to like Condi but I don't respect her any longer. We NEED to get out of Israel's face and leave them alone. They have made MORE than enough concessions to those murdering Islamist pukes!!
BEcause the whole thing is a farce. Arafat was born in Cairo. Abbas was born in Jordan. 2 of the 3 other top P.A. leaders were born in Syria and Lebanon. There is no such thing as a "Palestinian".
Maybe now that it becomes more & more obvious that George W. Bush, Condo-leeza Rice and the rest of the BA don't care about conservatives or what they think or want (it's background noise, chatter, lot of... o-pinin'), they don't think they have to hide the fact that they don't care what Israel thinks, wants, or needs either.
Too bad. I used to like her.
Not any more.
It's easy to forget that she was protege to Maddy Albright's Daddy.
I agree. On this issue I do not support Rice.
I'm simply amazed at the 180 change in our public statements concerning Israel since Bush was reelected. Whatever happened to "you're either with us or against us?" Hasn't Israel been with us with more intensity than any other nation during the WOT? Just what have the murdering palestinians done to show they are with us? Not a damn thing! Sorry Mr. President and Madam Secretary of State, but you both need to shut the hell up unless you're heaping vast quantities of praise on
Israel!
I love Israel. Lived there a while, in fact.
But, no, they are not always our friend.
Just recently they tried to sell Venezuela updated packages for thier F-16's. Only backed down after extremee US pressure. Tried to sell some sort of hightech aircraft to Cuba, too, I believe.
Israel is pretty damn socialist, too. They just have the advantage of a population that culturally despises freeloaders, so it hasn't gone down the drain.
I've never lived there, but would like to visit. I do not for a moment pretend that Israel is a perfect ally. Remember the stories of spies in the US working for Israel. But I do know that Israel has a right to live free of terrorist attacks on innocent Israeli civilians. I just wonder if Bush and Rice believe this.
Interesting...bump
Someone tell me again why I would want to vote for Condi?
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