Three weeks after President Bush demanded the replacement of Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian leader has tried to open a dialogue with the Bush administration with a long letter to Secretary of State Colin Powell on U.S. demands for democratic change.
In the letter, Arafat listed reforms he has undertaken but told Powell Israel's military thrust onto the West Bank has limited what he could do, said a U.S. official familiar with the letter, according to AP. Arafat said a 100-day reform program already was in place and requested U.S. help to implement further reforms, said the official.
Powell, in a brief interview with the Qatari al-Jazeera TV said he read the letter and found it interesting. "We will take his points under consideration. I am not now dealing with Chairman Arafat. We are waiting for new leaders to emerge or a new leadership to be designated that we can work with," Powell aired. "We are anxious to work with other leaders within the Palestinian Authority."
At the State Department, Powell's spokesman, Richard Boucher, said Friday, "He did read the letter, yes." "These are issues that we discuss with the Palestinians," Boucher added.
In response to persistent U.S. demands for reform, which Bush has made a condition for supporting establishment of a Palestinian state, Arafat has said the Palestinian security apparatus was wrecked by Israeli forces in their forays into Palestinian-held areas. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
