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Palestinians' Stance on US Peace Plan Unchanged: Moussa
The Palestinian side still insisted on clarification for the US peace proposals on a final settlement with Israel, Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa said Monday.
Moussa said after a meeting between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat that the two leaders held the one-hour talks and consulted on the U.S. peace plan " completely," but the situation has not changed, the state-run Middle East News Agency reported.
He denied allegations that US President Bill Clinton has invited Arafat and Israeli caretaker Prime Minister Ehud Barak to hold a meeting in Washington before January 10, saying that there were no such invitations.
Moussa said that the US proposals were still under considerations, adding that contacts between the US, Arab countries and Israel were continuing but "nothing palpable or definite has come out yet."
The Egyptian minister stressed that the US proposals need clarifications and explanations and Egypt sees the necessity of finding a "fair" position towards the Palestinians.
"Nobody can sign a deal right now without knowing what he is signing because there is no agreement to sign," he said.
Egypt "cannot tell the Palestinian side to accept or reject such proposals. Egypt does not decide their destiny for them. They are the party to decide," the minister said.
He did not rule out the possibility of reaching an agreement before Clinton leaves office on January 20, saying that there is still some time if the Palestinians find an appropriate stand towards them.
Clinton proposed a compromise plan on December 23, which would give Palestinians sovereignty over Arab neighborhoods and the Al Aqsa mosque compound in East Jerusalem, but deny the Palestinian refugees' right of return.
Under the plan, Israel would have sovereignty over the Wailing Wall and part of the Armenian quarter of the Old City in East Jerusalem.
Israel has accepted the proposals in principle while the Palestinian leadership expressed deep reservations over them.
Arafat has returned to Gaza Strip Monday afternoon. A frequent visitor to Egypt, he often discusses complicated issues with Mubarak, who has been playing a key mediating role in the Middle East peace process.
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