American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice warned the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Israel Thursday that time is running out for them to decide on borders for a new Arab state within Israel's current borders. Anxious to achieve a final agreement before next January, when American President George W. Bush leaves office, she insisted that expanding Israeli communities does not mean they will remain a part of Israel. Speaking in London on the eve of a PA-hosted donor conference, she stated. "I do not, and the United States government does not, accept that anything done prior to agreement can ... present a fait accompli or determine the final outcome."
Secretary Rice estimated that the "window for the two-state solution is not open forever, [and] I think you could argue it's gotten narrower and narrower over time." She plans to visit Israel and the PA next week in an attempt to advance negotiations before a visit by American President George W. Bush the following week.