Jordan Times
Monday, May 23, 2005
Israel's withdrawal must be on
time — Monarch
DEAD SEA (AFP) — Jordan and Egypt on Sunday urged Israel not to delay its
planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and stressed that calm was needed on all
sides for a smooth transition.
The appeals came in meetings Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom had
separately with His Majesty King Abdullah and Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed
Abul Gheit, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum here.
King Abdullah spoke to Shalom “about the peace process and insisted that the
Gaza pullout must take place on time and be followed by [other] Israeli
withdrawals from occupied Palestinian territory,” a Royal Court official told
AFP.
The Monarch also told Shalom that “calm must prevail in the territories to
ensure the success of the withdrawals,” the official added.
Emerging from talks with Shalom, the Egyptian foreign minister echoed these
views.
“It is necessary for Israel and the Palestinians to maintain a dialogue in order
to facilitate the withdrawal,” Abul Gheit said.
Israel, he said, “must understand that problems will arise but they should not
be allowed to hinder the withdrawal.”
Abul Gheit said Israel and the Palestinians should avoid any escalation.
For his part Shalom said Israel will go ahead as planned with the Gaza pullout
that is due to begin in mid-August, although splits emerged between Israeli
officials over the possibility of a further delay.
“There are no plans to postpone the withdrawal from Gaza,” Shalom said, adding
that Israeli-Egyptian talks were aimed at achieving progress with the
Palestinians and containing violence in the region.
“We have an important opportunity with the Palestinians and we are determined to
seize it,” he said.
“The main danger facing Abu Mazen's government comes from Hamas which is trying
to destroy the Palestinian Authority,” he said about Palestinian leader Mahmoud
Abbas.
Shalom also said Israel “will allow Russian assistance [to the Palestinians]
when security is well rooted and when we are sure it will not be used against
us,” he said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin pledged aid and military equipment to the
Palestinians to reform, boost security and rebuild the shattered economy during
a historic Middle East tour at the end of April.
Meanwhile Shalom said he is due to attend a dinner in Luxembourg next month
which is expected to be attended by rival Arab foreign ministers taking part in
a conference on Euro-Mediterranean cooperation.
“In less than two weeks I will be in the same dining hall as the foreign
ministers of Syria, Lebanon... and maybe Libya,” he said, adding he hoped for
“breakthrough” during the evening.