Rice calls for peace during Gaza withdrawal
Foreign ministers from the world’s leading industrialised nations reached agreement today on far-reaching issues, from Afghanistan’s narcotic prodution to Israel’s withdrawal from the Palestinian territories.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice insisted Israel’s disengagement from Gaza must be peaceful, and urged Middle Eastern countries not to turn a blind eye to terrorism.
The Group of Eight nations also urged North Korea to resume dialogue on its nuclear program, called on Iran not to resume its uranium enrichment activities and condemned human rights abuses in Zimbabwe and the western Sudanese region of Darfur.
Less than two months away from Israel’s withdrawal from all 21 Jewish settlements on the Gaza Strip and four in the West Bank, the Middle East peace process dominated much of the daylong summit in London.
There are fears the pullout could lead to an escalation of violence if Palestinian militants fire at settlers leaving their homes or at security forces carrying out the mass evacuation.
Rice, in London after a tour of the region, called on the Palestinian authority to rein in militants and said neighbouring countries must fight terrorism.
“There cannot be a blind eye to the activities of states that are supporting terrorist groups whether it be the Syrians, the Palestinians, Islamic Jihad which is headquartered in Damascus, or the Iranians who have never supported the peace process and continue to support terrorists,” she said.
Syria hosts the headquarters of the Palestinian militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and also has close ties with the Lebanese guerrilla group Hezbollah, which is also supported by Iran.
Earlier today, Rice met with top officials from Russia, the European Union and the United Nations to discuss the road map to peace in the Middle East.
The so-called Quartet said in a statement the Gaza withdrawal should revitalise the road map peace process and encouraged the two sides to “move closer to the goal of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security.”
Afghan Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah joined the G8 talks, which discussed how to stem the flow of narcotics from Afghanistan.
The country last year supplied more than 90% of the world’s opium, the raw material for heroin, sparking warnings that the country was turning into a narco-state just three years after the fall of the Taliban.
“We recommitted ourselves and the international community to a long-term relationship with the people of Afghanistan and its government as there is still a very great deal to do given the legacy of the Taliban,” said Britain’s Foreign Secretary Jack Straw.
