SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt , 13 May — Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak yesterday discussed ways to coordinate with the Palestinians their efforts to bring peace to the Middle East.
The one-on-one meeting between the two leaders in the Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh followed Saturday’s mini-summit with Syrian President Bashar Assad. The three Arab political heavyweights said they were committed to seeking peace with Israel in exchange for occupied Arab land.
Egyptian Information Minister Safwat El-Sherif said Mubarak and Crown Prince Abdullah had "discussed coordination with the Palestinian side and exchanged views on all proposed ideas for the achievement of security and stability in the Middle East".
He said the two leaders urged the international community to help rebuild Palestinian areas, shattered by Israel’s military offensives.
Palestinian officials, including Cabinet minister Nabil Shaath and Muhammad Dahlan, Palestinian preventive security chief in Gaza, were in Sharm El-Sheikh during the summit and held talks with Saudi and Egyptian officials on the sidelines.
In Damascus, Syrian Information Minister Adnan Omran was quoted by the state-run news agency as saying the mini-summit had embraced a vision of peace based on UN Security Council resolutions calling for an Israeli withdrawal from the Golan.
"These resolutions are the responsibility of the international community, and the position that emerged at Sharm El-Sheikh is to concentrate international efforts to enforce these resolutions," he said.
Shaath later said he expected "concrete steps" soon from the United States. "There is more optimism about the possibility of a change in the American attitude, which will head in a more positive direction and become more understanding of the Arab and Palestinian position," Shaath said.
The United States was committed to ensuring an Israeli withdrawal from areas reoccupied during the Israeli offensive launched in the West Bank on March 29, he said.
