Condoleezza Rice started on Sunday her first Middle East trip as US secretary of state, pledging to stoke the momentum of the peace process and steer it through crises she says will "inevitably" arise.
US officials said they were reviewing with the parties involved some sort of "crisis-management mechanism" to keep the talks going even through new cycles of violence that have wrecked previous negotiations.
Rice met with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom and President Moshe Katsav, and urged them to maintain the status quo over Jerusalem, and avoid taking any unilateral steps on the disputed city which could harm Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
In Israel, Rice said Sunday that the disengagement plan is an historic opportunity, and that the future security of Palestinians and Israelis will be ensured only by two states exisiting side by side.
In an interview with TV Channel 2 Rice stressed the importance of direct contact between Israeli and Palestinian officials, and minimum involvement of mediators such as the U.S.
When asked about the right of return for Palestinian refugees, the secretary of state said that while new demographic realities since 1967 must be taken into account, the parties must reach an agreement accommodating to the needs of them both.
Earlier, the top American diplomat said the United States was happy to take a supporting role in efforts to end 52 months of Israeli-Palestinian bloodshed as long as the parties make progress, but it is ready to do more. "When our involvement needs to take on a different character, we'll do precisely that," she told reporters aboard the plane ferrying her on a tour of Europe sandwiched around the stops in Israel and the West Bank.
Rice said Washington was working to help the parties "develop means by which they can talk and solve the kind of crises that are inevitably going to come up as they go along this road." "We know the rejectionists and the terrorists are going to continue to try to make statements, sometimes violent statements, that they are unreconciled to a process of reconciliation and forward movement," she said.
On his part, Sharon said following the meeting with Rice "Dr. Rice knows Israel and its problems very well and I am sure that her visit here will contribute to advancing bilateral relations, which have been traditional for many years, and to advancing the peace process which we all want to advance so much."
In the meantime, the Israelis and Palestinians agreed Saturday night on the formation of a special committee to deal with the thorny issue of prisoner release, and to address the issue in earnest following the completion of the summit meeting in Sharm al-Sheikh on Tuesday.
© 2005 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
