Free Republic

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell assured Europeans Tuesday that the Bush administration was determined to launch a Palestinian state and that any decision on Israeli population centers remaining on the West Bank would require Palestinian approval. Still, Powell lined up with President George Bush's assurances last week to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon that "the realities that exist in the area" should be taken into account in a peace accord. Powell made the statements after a meeting with Javier Solana, the senior European Union's top foreign policy official. The White House on Tuesday played down any hint of friction with...