Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Thursday ruled out any compromise on his insistence on seven days of total calm before starting truce talks with the Palestinians, just hours before leaving for the United States.
The hardline decision came despite a statement by Israeli Defense Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer, who on Wednesday did not rule out that Israel might make a compromise on the seven-day calm demand.
The demand has come under criticism from Palestinians, who call it a tactic to avoid negotiations by simply leaving the situation vulnerable to extremists.
However, Sharon said: "We will not negotiate under fire. We hold to our stance," referring to his continued insistence that Palestinian President Yasser Arafat halt all attacks on Israeli targets before any talks could take place.
Arafat pledged after a meeting with US envoy Anthony Zinni on Wednesday that he would exert 100 percent efforts to preserve a ceasefire.
Sharon was addressing reporters before heading off for Washington later in the day for a five-day visit which will include his third meeting with US President George W. Bush.
"There will be peace, yes, if we don't make mistakes and if we stand by agreements," Sharon said.
Sharon was also quoted by the Tel Aviv-based Haaretz newspaper as saying that he was one of a handful of people capable of reaching a permanent settlement with the Palestinians, and emphasized that it could only be achieved through a series of interim agreements between the two sides.
Sharon made the comments in an address before the Editors Council at Beit Sokolov in Tel Aviv.
"I believe the Palestinians are missing out on an exceptional opportunity," he said. "I am one of the few who can broker a deal with the Palestinians."
Sharon, who came to power promising to ensure the safety of ordinary Israelis shortly after taking office, recently told his Likud Party inner circle to prepare for a long struggle.
Over 700 Palestinians and more than 190 Israelis have been killed in the latest Palestinian uprising against 34 years of Israeli military occupation.
US ENVOYS PUSH PEACE TALKS
Amid Sharon's departure, US envoys have arrived in the region aiming to kick-start efforts to cement a ceasefire on the ground and implement the Mitchell plan, named after former US senator George Mitchell, which provides a road map for defusing tensions and restoring confidence.
In Egypt, where he met with President Hosni Mubarak, US envoy William Burns said that a ceasefire in the Middle East conflict would be the "first step" toward the creation of a Palestinian state.
"We discussed the ways in which we can continue to work together to try to help produce a durable ceasefire between Palestinians and Israelis," Burns, who is US assistant secretary of state, told reporters.
He said it would be "the first step toward a rapid implementation of the Tenet and Mitchell plans in all their aspects and the resumption of the political process.”
To Palestinians, the next six weeks will be "crucial" to resolving more than a year of resistance to Israeli military occupation.
A top aide to Arafat told AFP Thursday that "the next six weeks are going to be crucial to the fate of the peace process."
Nabil Abu Rudeina added that senior US peace envoys in the region must translate Washington's vision for a Palestinian state into reality.
He said the "real test" for US envoys Anthony Zinni and Burns was to make good on Bush's speech at the United Nations earlier this month for a Palestinian state to be established based on UN resolutions calling on Israel to quit occupied territory.
He said Zinni, a retired Marine Corps general, and Burns should ensure Israel ends it blockade of the Palestinian territories, which have been sealed off since the start of the uprising 14 months ago, and stop "Israeli aggression."
Abu Rudeina said Zinni's meetings with Arafat in the West Bank town of Ramallah on Wednesday had been "serious and positive."
Zinni, according to Haaretz, is due meet separately with the Palestinians and the Israelis on Thursday. He was expected in Egypt, but he did not join Burns in his visit to Cairo – Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
