 |
Al-Ahram Weekly 31 August - 6 September 2000 Issue No. 497 
|
||
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
|
||
|
Al-Ahram Weekly 31 August - 6 September 2000 Issue No. 497
|
||
| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
|
||
Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Eye on the hour
By Nevine KhalilFresh from talks with US President Bill Clinton and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, President Hosni Mubarak will travel to France tomorrow to forge ahead with his quest for a comprehensive Arab-Israeli settlement. France is the current president of the European Union and has traditionally shown a keen interest in the Middle East peace process. President Jacques Chirac is evidently eager to listen to Mubarak's views on how the gap between the Palestinians and Israelis may be bridged.
Mubarak will "consult and exchange views and information" with Chirac, according to presidential adviser Osama El-Baz. "Now, more then ever before, there is a worldwide feeling that the coming few weeks are very critical for the peace process," said El-Baz. "If we don't reach agreement within that time frame, this will signal serious repercussions for all parties."
Other consultations were on Mubarak's agenda this week to help the Palestinians and Israel reach a framework agreement, hopefully by September. He held talks with Arafat yesterday and with Clinton on Tuesday. The US President had stopped in Cairo on his way home from an African tour after Mubarak cancelled plans to make an appearance at the 6-8 September UN Millennium Summit. Instead, Mubarak will send Foreign Minister Amr Moussa to head Egypt's delegation because "the president is busy with domestic and regional issues," noted El-Baz.
Time is short for the peace process, according to President Clinton. President Mubarak agreed, during rushed talks at Cairo airport on Tuesday photos: AP
Arafat will be back in Cairo on Sunday for his seventh visit since last month's failed Camp David talks, to address the opening session of an Arab League ministerial meeting dedicated to discussing the future of Jerusalem. Arafat will later travel to New York for the Millennium Summit and an expected meeting with Clinton. The US President is also expected to have a separate meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak.
At the Arab League Arafat will brief top diplomats on the latest developments in negotiations and his recent whirlwind tour of Arab and Asian states. In turn Arab foreign ministers are expected to affirm their rejection of Israeli attempts to Judaise the Holy City, voice their support for a Palestinian state, and confirm their refusal of compromising on Arab sovereignty over East Jerusalem.
Although negotiations at Camp David failed to bring Palestinian and Israeli viewpoints closer, the talks succeeded in breaking the unwritten taboo on negotiating the future of Jerusalem. Over the past few weeks Cairo has been playing a leading role in evolving "creative" ideas on how the two sides can navigate the turbulent seas of this flashpoint issue. Egypt and the US compared notes during nearly two hours of talks between Mubarak and Clinton at Cairo airport on Tuesday.
"Time is short," cautioned Clinton before the talks began. "We are going to work together and see if we can find a way to help the parties get over this next big hump." Mubarak said he is "always hopeful" that Cairo's and Washington's efforts will bear fruit. Clinton expressed gratitude for Egypt's role, saying that "all parties understand that without the involvement, leadership and support of Egypt they won't be able to [resolve differences]."
Clinton listened "with great interest to Egypt's suggestions and opinions," said Moussa after the meeting. "We hope to make progress towards our goal although there are still [obstacles] which require a huge effort."
US Special Envoy Dennis Ross, who briefed Clinton on Air Force One for one hour, said that Cairo and Washington are "working in parallel and keeping in very close touch." Both are focusing on "the substance" rather than "procedure" right now, Ross continued, adding that there was a "window [of opportunity], and there is a risk it could be lost... If you can't reach an agreement at a certain point there's always the risk of erosion of the advances made. And when that happens you find yourself having to climb a much bigger mountain."
Ross said that a "mechanism" to overcome "the hard differences" between the parties has emerged from consultations. "Very tough, painful decisions are required," said the American diplomat. This is the reason Clinton said he was only prepared to hold a three-way summit with Arafat and Barak "when he saw readiness [on their part] to make decisions."
At the separate meetings with Arafat and Barak on the fringe of the Millennium Summit, Clinton aims to evaluate progress, opportunities and strategies in order "to create greater clarity" of the situation, said Ross, adding that Washington will "focus on what can be done with the two [sides] separately."
"The most important thing is to see [whether] we can reach agreement. That is probably more important than focusing on a particular date," said Ross.
Moussa was optimistic over Clinton having committed the US to a "continued positive role in the coming weeks." But El-Baz cautioned: "It is not up to Egypt or the US to close a deal, we are only helping." He added that Cairo was not working on "fixed formulas or proposals forced on either party, but presenting them with some ideas and alternatives to overcome the current crisis." Ross agreed, saying that "each party will make their own decisions."
The most elusive point, according to El-Baz, is sovereignty and administrative arrangements at Al-Haram Al-Sharif. Egypt's ideas exclude Israeli sovereignty over Islamic holy sites.
Pounding the point home, Arafat took an escort of Muslim and Christian clergy with him to Morocco for the meeting of the Jerusalem Committee of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC). The committee, chaired by Morocco's King Mohamed VI, contented itself by issuing a statement on Monday containing the usual rhetoric of support for unlimited Palestinian sovereignty over East Jerusalem, and cautioning countries against moving their embassies from Tel Aviv to the Holy City.
El-Baz said: "We want to reach any form of agreement. If a package deal is possible, good and well, but if not, a framework agreement to guide final status negotiations soon afterwards will do."
The stalled Syrian track of negotiations, barely broached in the recent diplomatic flurry, is expected to be a main item in tomorrow's Mubarak-Chirac talks in Paris because, as Mubarak told Clinton, he believes "conditions are ripe for making progress on the Syrian track too."
Additional reporting by Rasha Saad and Sherine Bahaa
Related stories
Deadlines and diplomacy 24 - 30 August 2000
Sprinting an extra mile 17 - 23 August 2000
Camp David II 13 - 19 July 200
