U.S. Welcomes Palestinian Decision on Elections

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, June 27, 2002

U.S. Welcomes Palestinian Decision on Elections

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Washington on Tuesday welcomed a decision by the Palestinian leadership to hold presidential and legislative elections early next year, saying it is a "positive" step toward meeting the demand put forward by U.S. President George W. Bush in his new Middle East peace plan.

"The president made clear that we needed a new dynamic, we needmore reform of Palestinian political, economic and security structure," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher told reporters.

"The announcement of new elections is part of that, it's a positive part."

Talking about the elections, Boucher said the choice which the Palestinians make will be closely linked with U.S. support.

"They can either choose what we've described as a disappointingkind of governance that they've had; they can choose the dead-end road that hasn't led them to fulfill their aspirations; or they can choose to follow a different path, a path of reform, of institution building, and create this kind of state," Boucher said.

The spokesman said that only by choosing the latter would the Palestinians get the support of the United States and the international community.

Saying that Washington is not trying to choose candidates or leaders for the Palestinians, Boucher reiterated that the existingPalestinian leadership and the direction it takes are not going toget U.S. support, encouragement or funding.

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