Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, April 23, 2003
Blair Urges Arafat to Help Form Palestinian Cabinet
British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Tuesday urged Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat over phone to help Prime Minister-designate Mahmoud Abbas, better known as Abu Mazen, to form a new cabinet, Palestinian sources said.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Tuesday urged Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat over phone to help Prime Minister-designate Mahmoud Abbas, better known as Abu Mazen, to form a new cabinet, Palestinian sources said.
During the phone talks, Arafat briefed Blair on the ongoing debates concerning the forming of the cabinet and international efforts aiming at implementing a US-proposed roadmap peace plan.
The two men also tackled the latest developments in the Palestinian territories in light of continuous Israeli military escalation against the Palestinians.
Blair's phone call coincided with a crisis between Arafat and Abu Mazen over forming the new cabinet, while Palestinian sources said there are mediations to convince Arafat to accept Abu Mazen's cabinet list.
The phone conversation came one day after Russian Mideast peace envoy Andrei Vdovin's announcement of a probable tour to the MiddleEast amid fears of delaying the implementation of the roadmap envisioning the creation of a Palestinian state by 2005.
Earlier in the day, several members of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) mediated between Arafat and Abu Mazen.
They told a press conference that the mediation was positive, expressing hope that the new cabinet would be announced Tuesday night or Wednesday.