Rice says Gaza pull-out best chance for peace
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said today that Israel’s planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip this summer provides both sides with the best chance for reinvigorating the stalled ”road map” peace plan.
“We must all focus on the disengagement as our best chance to re-energise the road map,” Rice said at a joint news conference with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.
Rice met with Palestinian officials today on the first day of a two-day tour of the region intended to help the Israelis and Palestinians co-operate on the Gaza Strip pullout. She planned to meet Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, tomorrow.
The internationally backed road map peace plan calls for the creation of a Palestinian state by the end of the year. However, the plan stalled soon after it was adopted in 2003 with both sides failing to follow through on their initial commitments.
The Palestinians have called for the Gaza pullout, originally planned as a unilateral Israeli move, to be incorporated into the peace plan, but Israel has resisted discussing any peace moves until after the withdrawal.
Israel and Palestinian officials have met in recent weeks to try to ensure that Israel’s pullout from Gaza and four northern West Bank settlements will not create chaos. However, no agreements on co-ordinating the pullout have been reached.
“Both parties will have to do their parts if this is to be a peaceful and orderly withdrawal from Gaza,” Rice said.
