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Al-Ahram Weekly 19 - 25 August 1999 Issue No. 443 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 19 - 25 August 1999 Issue No. 443
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Profile Travel Living Sports Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Consulting on Wye
By Khaled DawoudAs part of the continuous consultations between Egypt and the Palestinians, President Hosni Mubarak met on Monday with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat at Mubarak's private residence in Borg Al-Arab near Alexandria. In statements to reporters following the meeting, Arafat accused the new Israeli government of Ehud Barak of attempting to renege on the Wye River accords signed last October.
Arafat noted that Barak had repeatedly expressed readiness -- in public and in meetings with world leaders -- to implement the phased withdrawal of Israeli occupation troops in the West Bank as stipulated in Wye. "Yet," said Arafat, "when Palestinian and Israeli negotiators meet to discuss the implementation of the agreement, the Israelis place obstacles concerning the timetable and come up with interpretations over some of its articles which are totally irrelevant to what was originally agreed upon," Arafat said.
However, the Palestinian leader indicated that the Palestinians were ready to accept some of the proposals made by Barak, declaring that the third stage of the redeployment of Israeli troops provided for by the memorandum "could coincide with the opening of final status talks" between the two sides.
Palestinians insisted earlier that the Wye deal had to be implemented fully before starting final status negotiations on the thorny issues of Jerusalem, refugees, settlements, borders and water. Barak had demanded that the third stage of redeployment be incorporated in the final status negotiations. Palestinians feared this would mean delaying the third stage for a very long time as final settlement talks are expected to be complicated and might last for years.
President Hosni Mubarak during talks with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat
In his statements to reporters, Arafat affirmed that the Wye deal was not merely an agreement between the Palestinians and Israel. "It is an international agreement sponsored by the United States and signed at the White House by President Bill Clinton." Added Arafat: "we are not asking for the impossible, but demanding the accurate and honest implementation of what was agreed upon, whether in Oslo, Taba or Wye River."
Former right-wing Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu had signed the Wye deal with Arafat following extensive talks in which President Clinton participated personally. However, Netanyahu only carried out the first and smallest stage of redeployment of Israeli troops and refused to implement the second and third stages, claiming Palestinians did not honour their obligations to fight terrorism as was contained in the Wye deal.
Arafat said he explained to Mubarak in detail the obstacles facing Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. He added that Egypt is expected to continue its consultations with the Israeli side to ensure the implementation of signed agreements.
Asked what he thought of US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's decision to delay her trip to the region at Barak's request, Arafat said that the new Israeli government "does not want any outside intervention, whether Arab or American." The Palestinian leader also criticised Barak's government for continuing to build settlements in the West Bank despite claims of being committed to peace-making.
Arafat denied press reports that the Israeli army had already started preparing for the second phase of redeployment out of five per cent of West Bank territory, saying that "until now, we have not been shown any maps. What was offered to us was nothing but some inaccurate words which are in contradiction with the signed agreements."
Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa, who took part in the meeting between Mubarak and Arafat, agreed that the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations are facing difficulties. "But since the talks are still going on, we cannot speak of a crisis between the two sides. What we can say is that there are problems concerning the implementation of a number of points," Moussa said. He expressed hope that these problems would be overcome in future meetings between the two sides.
Palestinian and Israeli negotiators held three rounds of talks in pursuit of an agreement on the implementation of Wye, however the meetings failed to achieve tangible progress.
Moussa explained Egypt's current position in the peace process. "Egyptian policy at this stage is to give a chance to both parties (Palestinians and Israelis) to reach agreement, especially in light of Barak's statements and confirmation that he is committed to the implementation of the Wye deal."
Moussa said that Egypt was continuing its consultations with Israel, "but the basis of action right now is the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations." He added that "we do not exclude contacting Israel if the need arises."
Commenting on Albright's decision to postpone her regional tour, Moussa said the issue had been settled and that the US secretary of state was due to begin her visit in early September.
The foreign minister also emphasised the importance of achieving parallel progress on all Arab-Israeli tracks without delay. He said there were ongoing "official and unofficial contacts" for the resumption of talks between Israel and Syria, "but the position to which I would like to give expression is that the Syrian track is of the same importance as the Palestinian track and the Lebanese track." He also declared support for the Syrian position that talks with Israel should be resumed from the point where they left off following Netanyahu's rise to power in June 1996.
