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Powell Meets with Geneva Initiative Drafters Beilin and Abed Rabbo
Says road map provides "appropriate pathway" to peace
Secretary of State Colin Powell met with former Israeli Justice Minister Yossi Beilin and former Palestinian Authority Minister for Information and Culture Yasser Abed Rabbo in Washington December 5 to discuss their Geneva Initiative for Middle East peace.
According to a December 5 statement released by State Department, Powell told both drafters of the initiative that the road map plan drawn up by the United Nations, the European Union, Russia and the United States, "provides the appropriate pathway" to realize the vision of a two state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Powell called on the Palestinian leadership to eliminate terrorism and enact democratic reforms and on Israel to freeze its settlement activity and remove unauthorized outposts in the occupied territories, according to the statement.
Powell said "the United States remains actively engaged in promoting peace and hopes that private citizens' activities will improve cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians," according to the statement.
Following is the text of the statement by Deputy Spokesman Ereli:
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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
December 5, 2003
STATEMENT BY J. ADAM ERELI, DEPUTY SPOKESMAN
Secretary Powell's Meeting with Drafters of Geneva Initiative
Secretary Powell met today with the Israeli and Palestinian initiators of the Geneva Initiative, and reaffirmed America's commitment to President Bush's vision, articulated on June 24, 2002 of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security.
The Secretary explained that the Quartet Roadmap provides the appropriate pathway for moving to the realization of that vision and that there are no shortcuts along the way. He stated that aspirations for peace and Palestinian statehood could be achieved only through committed efforts to end all terrorism and dismantle terrorist organizations, and promote genuine reform giving Palestinians new, democratic leadership. Similarly, Israel must meet its responsibilities under the roadmap, including removing unauthorized outposts and freezing settlement activity. The realization of this vision requires the active engagement of all parties-Israel, the Palestinians, the Arab states, and the international community.
The Secretary stated that the United States remains actively engaged in promoting peace and hopes that private citizens' activities will improve cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians.
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(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)