U.S. Expresses Concern About Israel's Future

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Tuesday expressed concern about the future of Israel unless a Palestinian state is created and stressed that Israel has responsibilities to foster a climate of peace.

"This idea that the Israelis just kind of sit back and wait for things to happen, that's just not the way the speech reads," said a White House official.

Bush laid out tough conditions for his proposed path to provisional Palestinian statehood within about 18 months and a final settlement in three years. He called for replacing Arafat with a new leadership "not compromised by terror," democratic reforms, a constitution and a new security arrangement that Israel can trust.

Aides pointed out that Bush never said anything to indicate Israel should wait for Palestinian action, noting the president said that as the security situation improves, Israeli forces need to withdraw fully to positions they held before Sept. 28, 2000, which would free up about 40 percent of the West Bank.

Bush also said that as violence subsides, Israel should allow freedom of movement for the Palestinians and release frozen Palestinian revenues.

"We view this as parallel tracks going hand in hand, not as a sequencing sort of arrangement," said the White House official, who asked to remain unidentified.

Bush carried his plan to a summit in Canada looking for support from leaders from Europe, Japan and Russia. The State Department said contacts would be made with various parties in the region on how to move Bush's road map for Palestinian statehood forward.

"The president planted the seeds and now it's up to the parties to nurture those seeds, grow them, and the United States is there to help," White House spokesman Ari Fleischer ( news - web sites) told reporters.

There was no word on when Secretary of State Colin Powell ( news - web sites) might travel to the region to try to arrange a Middle East peace conference. U.S. officials said the conference was still desired but that it was too early to try to schedule it because of continued violence.

Fleischer said Bush believed strongly that "if the parties want to find a way out of the violence, they need to heed his call."

"The president believes his speech represents the best hope for the Palestinian people, and he believes that his speech represents the best long-term hopes of Israel. He is very worried about the future viability of Israel unless a Palestinian state is created," he said.

After Bush essentially called on Palestinians to replace Arafat in his speech, Powell said on Tuesday the United States would respect the electoral choice of the Palestinian people once they hold elections.

Asked what would happen if they re-elected Arafat, Powell told National Public Radio: "Well, we'll just have to see how that plays out. I mean, we will deal with the circumstances as we find them."

A senior State Department official said Washington wants Arafat to lead the reform process but step aside when his task reaches completion.

"We know he is the leader ... We would hope that he would work himself out of a job," said the official on condition of anonymity.

Bush may have a tough sales job at the Kananaskis, Canada, summit of the leaders of the world's seven largest industrial democracies plus Russia. Leaders of those nations, while eager for U.S. leadership in Middle East diplomacy, tend to give Palestinian interests comparatively greater weight.

Britain, which has been one of Bush's staunchest backers, joined others in welcoming the new sign of U.S. commitment to act, but also reflected European concern about excluding Arafat as Palestinian leader.

"We welcome the speech and the engagement it demonstrates from the U.S. administration," Prime Minister Tony Blair ( news - web sites)'s spokesman told reporters. But he added, "We have always said it is for the Palestinian people to choose their own leader."

European Union ( news - web sites) foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who has consistently stood behind Arafat as the legitimate representative of his people, did not back his ouster and pointedly refrained from mentioning him in a statement welcoming Bush's initiative.

While many Arab commentators rejected Bush's move to replace Arafat, a key regional player, Jordan, welcomed the president's principle of building two states and significantly expressed no direct support for the embattled Palestinian leader.

In his long-awaited speech, Bush offered no details of a final settlement, leaving key issues, including the borders of the new state, the status of Jerusalem and the right of return for Palestinian refugees to future negotiations. He did not repeat a call to Israel to halt incursions into Palestinian areas.

"This idea that the Israelis just kind of sit back and wait for things to happen, that's just not the way the speech reads," said a White House official"

I didn't read it that way either. But it doesn't matter. It will always be read in the negative by the Arab "leaders" and Western collabos. The govt. shouldn't wate its time explaining - it's worthless.

If they came out with the goods on Arafat, that might help. But the insinuations are too oblique.

" ... and stressed that Israel has responsibilities to foster a climate of peace. "

I guess they mean "quit being such cry-babies over the suicide bombers, attacks on housewives and children, the daily calls for the destruction of Israel, blah, blah, blah"? ... [/sarcasm]

**Amid Arab complaining that President Bush ( news - web sites)'s Middle East speech on Monday was tilted toward Israel.

WAAAAAA. lol All the Arabs do is whine.

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