U.S. President George Bush is expected to deliver his long-awaited policy speech on the Middle East today or tomorrow.
It was under the assumption that the die had not been cast that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon flew to Washington last week, in a final attempt to persuade Bush not to call for a Palestinian state, temporary or otherwise, and to explain why Arafat must not be allowed a say in future diplomatic matters. Many officials in the Bush Administration, such as Vice President Cheney, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, Under Defense Secretary Wolfowitz, and others largely agree with Sharon, while Secretary of State Powell feels that Arafat should be given another chance. National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice said yesterday that the current Palestinian Authority structure cannot serve as a basis for an independent PLO state, and that the rampant corruption in the PA is not conducive for the establishment of a democratic Palestinian entity.
Public Security Minister Uzi Landau yesterday expressed sharp criticism for the \"temporary state\" idea. He said that such an entity would be a \"great reward\" for Yasser Arafat and his terrorist regime for carrying out daily attacks against Israel since September 2000. Landau said that Israel must immediately step up its war against terrorism, and not just in one city or village at a time, \"but in the entire Palestinian Authority at once.\"
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, on the other hand, announced in Bulgaria today that he had reached an agreement with Palestinian Authority leaders on the establishment of a PA state with temporary borders. He said that the agreement he reached with Abu Ala is based on ideas that were \"neither accepted nor rejected by the Government of Israel… We are not talking about a temporary state, but rather temporary borders - an idea that is catching on in the U.S., Egypt, and Saudi Arabia.\"
It was under the assumption that the die had not been cast that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon flew to Washington last week, in a final attempt to persuade Bush not to call for a Palestinian state, temporary or otherwise, and to explain why Arafat must not be allowed a say in future diplomatic matters. Many officials in the Bush Administration, such as Vice President Cheney, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, Under Defense Secretary Wolfowitz, and others largely agree with Sharon, while Secretary of State Powell feels that Arafat should be given another chance. National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice said yesterday that the current Palestinian Authority structure cannot serve as a basis for an independent PLO state, and that the rampant corruption in the PA is not conducive for the establishment of a democratic Palestinian entity.
Public Security Minister Uzi Landau yesterday expressed sharp criticism for the \"temporary state\" idea. He said that such an entity would be a \"great reward\" for Yasser Arafat and his terrorist regime for carrying out daily attacks against Israel since September 2000. Landau said that Israel must immediately step up its war against terrorism, and not just in one city or village at a time, \"but in the entire Palestinian Authority at once.\"
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, on the other hand, announced in Bulgaria today that he had reached an agreement with Palestinian Authority leaders on the establishment of a PA state with temporary borders. He said that the agreement he reached with Abu Ala is based on ideas that were \"neither accepted nor rejected by the Government of Israel… We are not talking about a temporary state, but rather temporary borders - an idea that is catching on in the U.S., Egypt, and Saudi Arabia.\"