Amid ongoing violence between the Palestinians and Israelis, U.S. administration officials said Wednesday that a conference on Middle East peace initially planned for early summer now might be delayed until at least late summer. In addition, the Bush administration had not even decided whether to propose a timetable for a final settlement, The New York Times reported Thursday.
A high-level US administration official said Wednesday that the timing of the peace conference would depend on the “willingness of the parties” in the Mid-east region to participate in detailed talks and an understanding “in advance” of the possible results of the conference, The New York Times added.
"I think that before going and saying, `We think the path is this,' it's extremely important to have consultations with the parties to see what the lay of the land is," the official expressed, adding, "The fact is, we have to work still on some of the building blocks."
The official reiterated, at the same time, that Bush was committed to the creation of a Palestinian state, along terms outlined in longstanding UN resolutions exchanging Israeli-occupied territories for peace, but that how best to get there remained unclear. "The outlines of this are not really a secret to anyone, I think," the official said.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Colin Powell said Wednesday that after Burns and Tenet returned from the region, "We will then be in a better position to see how we go forward toward the meeting that we are still planning to hold sometime in the course of the summer."
Another State Department official said September seemed a more probable date, claiming "September 20 is officially the last day of summer." However, Secretary Powell's schedule that month is already full, with a planned trip to South Africa and the annual meeting of the UN General Assembly in New York. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
