JEDDAH, 4 March 2002 - Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, yesterday discussed Israelí's military escalation in the Palestinian territories with Palestinian International Cooperation Minister Nabil Shaath.
“They examined the deteriorating situation, the massacres and the destruction in the Palestinian territories, as well as the Israeli blockade imposed by force on the Palestinians,” the Saudi Press Agency said. “They also underscored the need to set up an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital,” SPA added.
The crown prince also talked to French President Jacques Chirac by telephone. Chirac assured French and EU support for the crown princeís peace move.
Shaath arrived here overnight with a high-ranking delegation for talks on the crown princeís Middle East peace initiative. The talks focused on ways of adopting a “common Saudi-Palestinian approach to the initiative” and the outcome of a meeting between Crown Prince Abdullah and two senior US officials, Mustafa Al-Sheikh Dib, Palestinian ambassador to the Kingdom, said. CIA chief George Tenent and US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs William Burns held talks Thursday with the crown prince.
The crown prince suggested in mid-February full Arab recognition of Israel in return for a complete Israeli withdrawal from land captured in the June 1967 war.
Dib said the Kingdom has been exerting “continuous efforts with the Americans” to ensure that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat attends the Arab summit slated for March 27 in Beirut.
In Beirut, Syria and Lebanon said regional peace must be based on all UN Security Council resolutions on the Middle East conflict. The firm stance emerged at the end of a five-hour visit by Syrian President Bashar Assad, who held talks with Lebanese counterpart Emile Lahoud.
“A just, comprehensive and permanent peace ... must rest on Resolutions 194 (the right to return of refugees), 242 and 338 (Israelís pullout from land captured in 1967) and 425 (Israelís withdrawal from southern Lebanon),” a joint statement said.
Bashar was quoted by Asharq Al-Awsat as saying that there was no conflict between Damascus and Riyadh. “I will visit Saudi Arabia tomorrow (Tuesday) and discuss all major issues,” he said.
Arab League chief Amr Moussa said that Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi has confirmed his country will participate in the Beirut summit, despite threatening to quit the 22-member pan-Arab organization. Moussa made the announcement in Cairo after an urgent mission to the eastern Libyan city of Sirte to urge Qaddafi to back down on his threat.
