US urged to recognise Palestine.
From: AFP, AP December 10, 2010 12:00AM
THE chief Palestinian negotiator has said he was hoping to secure US recognition of an independent Palestinian state.
"Israel's defeat of US efforts places the region at a real crossroads," Saeb Erakat said of Israel's refusal to extend a settlement freeze. "We hope that the American administration would recognise the Palestinian state within the 1967 borders as a response to Israel's settlement diktats and other unilateral measures.
"If the United States wants to safeguard the two-state solution, it must recognise the Palestinian state within the 1967 borders," he said in Cairo. The Plan B of getting other countries to recognise a Palestinian state is taking shape after months of intense lobbying.
Brazil and Argentina have recognised "Palestine" and are expected to be followed by Uruguay next month. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is setting his sights on Europe and plans to ask increasingly influential Turkey to serve as a go-between.
But to secure US recognition is by far the most optimistic aim yet. One frequently raised option is to seek UN recognition. Securing a majority in the UN General Assembly would be the easier task, but winning over the Security Council would be the bigger prize. That would mean overcoming a probable US veto. Mr Erakat is to meet US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Washington today or tomorrow, while Mr Abbas is to hold separate talks this week with US Middle East envoy George Mitchell and Arab leaders.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak is also heading to Washington for meetings with senior defence and administration officials.
Washington acknowledged on Tuesday that it had dropped a demand that Israel renew a freeze on Jewish settlements in the West Bank. Without a new freeze, the Palestinians have refused to negotiate, deadlocking direct talks, which were launched on September 2 only to run aground three weeks later when building resumed in West Bank settlements.
But Washington said it was still holding out hope a peace deal could be reached within its 12-month target set in August.
"We believe that's still achievable," State Department spokesman PJ Crowley said. "It's not going to be easy, but we haven't changed our objective."
A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Washington's announcement on settlements.
"We said from the outset that settlements were not the root of the conflict and that it was only a Palestinian excuse for refusing to talk," Nir Hefetz said.
But Mr Crowley stressed that Washington "does not accept the legitimacy" of new Israeli construction in the occupied territory.
The EU also reiterated its opposition. "The EU position on settlements is clear: they are illegal under international law and an obstacle to peace," foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton said.
Hamas, which controls Gaza, said the US failure to secure any concession from Israel vindicated its opposition to the policy pursued by Mr Abbas's Fatah party.
"Fatah has lost its gamble of counting on Washington as the US position on the Palestinian question is always utterly dependent on Israel," spokesman Fawzi Barhum said. |
