Powell Offers Observers, Shuns Sanctions Against Israel

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, April 11, 2002

Powell Offers Observers, Shuns Sanctions Against Israel

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United States Secretary of State Colin Powell on Wednesday repeated the U.S. offer to send observers to the Middle East, but said he considered premature talk of sanctions against Israel for not fulfilling United Nations resolutions.

Powell said that unlike the European Union, the U.S. is not considering sanctions against Israel, and he needed to talk with the parties involved in the region in order to look for a negotiated solution, with the conviction of the international community that there is no military solution.

Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Pique raised the possibility of sanctions against Israel if Israel fails to withdraw its troops from Palestinian territories after discussions with Powell, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and EU officials. But Pique said he was not going to mention this during the meeting.

Pique, who is president of the EU Council of Foreign Ministers, said the EU would summon the Cooperation Council with Israel to discuss sanctions against Israel, to which the EU gives preferential trade terms.

The United States still holds its offer to send observers "for the application of the Tenet and Mitchell plans", Powell said. He was referring to a cease-fire plan drawn up by Central Intelligence Agency director George Tenet, and a peace plan spearheaded by former U.S. Senator George Mitchell.

"This limited U.S. presence could be accepted by the two parties, for a later consideration of other elements in order to generate confidence between them," he said.

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