Palestine Urges More Russia's Role in Mideast Peace TalksPalestine hopes Russia will play a more intensive role in the current Palestinian-Israeli peace talks and strengthen its status as a co-sponsor of the Middle East peace process, Palestinian Ambassador to Russia Hairi al-Oridi said Thursday.Israel and the US are opposing Russia's presence "at all stages of the negotiations," but Russia "should itself ensure its presence at these negotiations" as a co-sponsor of the Middle East peace process, Oridi stressed at a news conference in Moscow. Palestine will give its "final official response" to the peace proposals by U.S. President Bill Clinton after Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat meets with Arab League leaders in Cairo Thursday, he said, adding that Palestine's position on the U.S. proposals "in any case will include our reservations and conditions." The meeting of foreign ministers of Arab countries in Cairo will help work out a common Arab stand on the Palestinian-Israeli problem, Oridi said. Palestine "cannot accept the US proposals as a basis for the continuation of the peace process, because they are very much at variance with resolutions 242 and 338 of the U.N. Security Council, which are regarded as a foundation of the peace process in the Middle East," he stressed. The US proposals cannot end the disputes between Palestine and Israel, so "Palestine won't regard Washington's peace projects as the basis of the Middle East peace process any more," he said, wishing Moscow will act as a more just mediator in the peace talks. "Peace will be established only after Israel realizes the need for it... there is no alternative to the peace process," he noted. On the Jerusalem problem, he said that the city can be a common capital of the two states and the solution of this issue is a key to the establishment of the peace in the region. Recently, Russia has stepped up its efforts to mediate the Palestine-Israel conflict. As a result of Russia's diplomatic activities, an Israeli delegation visited Moscow Wednesday and brought a letter from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the Washington meeting between Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and US President Bill Clinton. "The Israeli government believes Moscow's participation is very important for the Middle East settlement," said the Israeli delegation officials during their meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Avdeyev. |
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