EU, Russia urge Israel not to mistake anti-terrorism fight with destruction of Palestinian leadership
Associated Press, Apr 2, 2002
EU, Russia urge Israel not to mistake anti-terrorism fight with destruction of Palestinian leadership
Tue Apr 2, 9:27 AM ET
By MAR ROMAN, Associated Press Writer
MADRID, Spain - The European Union (news - web sites) and Russia on
Tuesday warned Israel not to mistake its fight against terrorism with the
destruction of the Palestinian leadership of Yasser Arafat (news - web
sites).
Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Pique said
the European Union is considering holding an extraordinary foreign ministers
meeting on the Middle East crisis, but gave no further details.
"There is a need to distinguish between fight against
terrorism and the destruction of the political structures of the Palestinian
Authority (news - web sites)," Pique told a press conference in comments
echoed by Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov.
Pique and Ivanov called on Israel and the Palestinians
to immediately implement the latest U.N Security Council resolution on
the crisis.
"There must be compliance with the resolution of
the Security Council," Ivanov said. "There is a need to act, to resolve
a problem not to create others that aggravate the situation," he said.
Security Council resolution 1402, passed Saturday,
calls for a cease-fire and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestinian
towns, including Ramallah where Israeli forces have taken control of the
headquarters of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
Pique, whose country holds the rotating presidency
of the European Union, held talks with Ivanov and the EU's security affairs
chief, Javier Solana. The meeting was planned to prepare for a Russian-EU
summit on May 28 in Moscow.
"There is a concern that there is a desire to bury
Oslo," Solana said, referring to the 1993 accords negotiated in the Norwegian
capital between Israelis and Palestinians.
He said those accords should end with "two separate
states: Israel and Palestine, both with secure borders."
"The Oslo agreements must be respected and Israel
must ensure the continuity of the Palestinian Authority," Pique said. Otherwise,
he said, it could have "irreversible" consequences for the recuperation
of the peace process.
Earlier, Solana told Spain's Cadena SER radio that
it wouldn't be a bad idea for both Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel
Sharon (news - web sites) to step down and let others take over leadership.
"Neither is a saint and sometimes I'm inclined to
think that perhaps a new generation of persons in Israel and Palestine
could in the 21st century come with a solution to the conflict."
"These two people are both more than 75 years old
and have lived this conflict for a very long time — too long, if you ask
me. It wouldn't be bad if they step down in favor of other people."
Russia and EU urged Israel to grant Arafat freedom
of movement. The Palestinian leader remained trapped inside his West Bank
compound Tuesday as gunbattles raged outside between his Palestinian guards
and Israeli troops.
Pique said he didn't rule out sanctions against
Israel if its army doesn't withdraw from the West Bank and give Arafat
freedom of movement.
(mr/js)
Copyright © 2002 The Associated Press
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