BLESSED BEYOND BELIEF
November 4th, 2008, 08:11 AM
This was linked on Jimmy DeYoungs site "Prophecy Today"
http://www.metimes.com/International/2008/11/03/bush_calls_quartet_to_meet_a_surprise_in_the_makin g/6936/
CAIRO – U.S. President George W. Bush is making a last ditch effort toward forging a peace deal between the Israelis and Palestinians after U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice scheduled a Nov. 9 meeting in Egypt between members of the Middle East Peace Quartet. Washington had hoped to reinvigorate a Mideast peace process before leaving office in January, but time has almost run out.
The conference will mark the one-year anniversary of the conference in Annapolis that saw Bush attempt to make peace between the two embattled groups. But today a year later, his goal of forging a peace deal by the end of 2008 is all but out of reach. With Israel preparing for an election in early February and the outgoing U.S. Bush administration lacking political clout, little is expected to be achieved.
The quartet consists of Russia, the European Union, the United Nations and the United States.
Speaking in Romania, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas echoed predictions by experts and diplomats that a peace accord would not happen this year.
"I don't think it's possible to clear an accord by the end of this year as both the U.S. and the Israeli administrations are now busy with other matters and the very short time does not allow for striking such a deal," Abbas said at the start of a two-day visit to Romania on Monday.
"I would like to say after the election processes are over, we will resume negotiations and contacts to clear all the outstanding files in discussion. We will try to close these files, because up until now none have been closed," he added.
Despite the pessimism already surrounding the planned conference in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, the Egyptian government thinks negotiations should continue, one official told the Middle East Times.
There are a number of issues that need to be resolved until a final agreement can be discussed, he said.
"This is the reason we are having a meeting at this time. We understand that a final peace deal will probably not occur this year, but by getting some of the issues resolved, such as prisoner deals, we hope that in the coming year with new American and Israeli administrations, there will be excitement to get a deal accomplished," an official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the Middle East Times.
Egypt has been leading the Arab world's efforts to mediate between the Palestinians and Israelis. But in recent months their diplomats have fallen silent after a prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and Israel fell through. The government looks to this conference as a means to reinvigorate its role.
Europe, however, wants to see an end to violence on both sides first. EU chief negotiator Javier Solana, speaking in Brussels, said that violence must end before real and substantial discussions can take place.
"The escalation of violence and other illegitimate acts is shameful. The European Union calls for necessary measures to put an immediate stop to these actions and to act within international obligations," the EU foreign policy chief said.
With the American elections coming to a head, many in the Middle East are hoping for a time when Arab proposals, including the Saudi plan, will be greeted with openness.
"Sensing [Barack] Obama's likely election, prominent leaders in Israel have expressed serious willingness to reconsider the six-year old Arab peace proposal," Ghassan Rubeiz wrote in Lebanon's English-language Daily Star, alluding to the change of heart many Israeli officials have had on the 2002 Saudi peace plan proposal.
Although hoping for a watershed may be too much at this time considering the current political situation in Israeli and Palestinian politics. Israeli President Shimon Peres, did endorse the "spirit" of the Saudi peace plan during his visit with his Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mubarak in October.
The Saudi plan calls for Israel's pullout from all Arab territories it captured in the 1967 war and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in return for normalized relations with all Arab states. The plan was endorsed by the Arab League, but was initially rejected by Israel.
Early last year, however, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and other officials referred to the plan in statements, saying that it was an interesting offer and could be the basis of further negotiations.
Peres said at Sharm el-Sheikh that while he also has reservations about the initiative as it currently stands the spirit of the proposal is "correct."
The Saudi initiative "needs to be negotiated" further, he said, but marks what could be a turning point in Israel's willingness to look at Arab offers with interest.
While next Sunday's conference is not expected to bring new ideas to the table, Bush's last effort to jumpstart negotiations has raised the question in some analysts' minds as to whether Washington intends that something new and unexpected will come out from the hastily arranged conference.
http://www.metimes.com/International/2008/11/03/bush_calls_quartet_to_meet_a_surprise_in_the_makin g/6936/
CAIRO – U.S. President George W. Bush is making a last ditch effort toward forging a peace deal between the Israelis and Palestinians after U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice scheduled a Nov. 9 meeting in Egypt between members of the Middle East Peace Quartet. Washington had hoped to reinvigorate a Mideast peace process before leaving office in January, but time has almost run out.
The conference will mark the one-year anniversary of the conference in Annapolis that saw Bush attempt to make peace between the two embattled groups. But today a year later, his goal of forging a peace deal by the end of 2008 is all but out of reach. With Israel preparing for an election in early February and the outgoing U.S. Bush administration lacking political clout, little is expected to be achieved.
The quartet consists of Russia, the European Union, the United Nations and the United States.
Speaking in Romania, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas echoed predictions by experts and diplomats that a peace accord would not happen this year.
"I don't think it's possible to clear an accord by the end of this year as both the U.S. and the Israeli administrations are now busy with other matters and the very short time does not allow for striking such a deal," Abbas said at the start of a two-day visit to Romania on Monday.
"I would like to say after the election processes are over, we will resume negotiations and contacts to clear all the outstanding files in discussion. We will try to close these files, because up until now none have been closed," he added.
Despite the pessimism already surrounding the planned conference in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, the Egyptian government thinks negotiations should continue, one official told the Middle East Times.
There are a number of issues that need to be resolved until a final agreement can be discussed, he said.
"This is the reason we are having a meeting at this time. We understand that a final peace deal will probably not occur this year, but by getting some of the issues resolved, such as prisoner deals, we hope that in the coming year with new American and Israeli administrations, there will be excitement to get a deal accomplished," an official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the Middle East Times.
Egypt has been leading the Arab world's efforts to mediate between the Palestinians and Israelis. But in recent months their diplomats have fallen silent after a prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and Israel fell through. The government looks to this conference as a means to reinvigorate its role.
Europe, however, wants to see an end to violence on both sides first. EU chief negotiator Javier Solana, speaking in Brussels, said that violence must end before real and substantial discussions can take place.
"The escalation of violence and other illegitimate acts is shameful. The European Union calls for necessary measures to put an immediate stop to these actions and to act within international obligations," the EU foreign policy chief said.
With the American elections coming to a head, many in the Middle East are hoping for a time when Arab proposals, including the Saudi plan, will be greeted with openness.
"Sensing [Barack] Obama's likely election, prominent leaders in Israel have expressed serious willingness to reconsider the six-year old Arab peace proposal," Ghassan Rubeiz wrote in Lebanon's English-language Daily Star, alluding to the change of heart many Israeli officials have had on the 2002 Saudi peace plan proposal.
Although hoping for a watershed may be too much at this time considering the current political situation in Israeli and Palestinian politics. Israeli President Shimon Peres, did endorse the "spirit" of the Saudi peace plan during his visit with his Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mubarak in October.
The Saudi plan calls for Israel's pullout from all Arab territories it captured in the 1967 war and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in return for normalized relations with all Arab states. The plan was endorsed by the Arab League, but was initially rejected by Israel.
Early last year, however, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and other officials referred to the plan in statements, saying that it was an interesting offer and could be the basis of further negotiations.
Peres said at Sharm el-Sheikh that while he also has reservations about the initiative as it currently stands the spirit of the proposal is "correct."
The Saudi initiative "needs to be negotiated" further, he said, but marks what could be a turning point in Israel's willingness to look at Arab offers with interest.
While next Sunday's conference is not expected to bring new ideas to the table, Bush's last effort to jumpstart negotiations has raised the question in some analysts' minds as to whether Washington intends that something new and unexpected will come out from the hastily arranged conference.