Ross on Middle East Peace, Terrorism
Excerpts of an interview with Special Middle East Coordinator Dennis
Ross on "Fox News Sunday" October 15, 2000
Begin Excerpts:
QUESTION: Now joining us is Dennis Ross, Special Middle East
Coordinator for the Administration...Yemen says that there are no
terrorists on its soil. That's wrong.
DENNIS ROSS: Well, what's clear is that we've had an act that is very
tragic, where we have seventeen Americans who have lost their lives.
We have an investigation underway right now. The Yemenis are in fact
cooperating with that. It's pretty clear that there was an act against
us that was a terrorist act, and we've got to get to the bottom of it.
QUESTION: But is it not the case -- it's been well known in the
intelligence community, it's been published all over the place -- hat
there are a number of terrorist cells operating out of Aden, including
one called "The Suicidals," that's operated by Osama bin Ladin.
Correct?
DENNIS ROSS: Well, I think what we have seen over the last several
years is that Yemen has done a better job in trying to deal with the
terrorist threat, and we've been building a relationship with them.
But obviously, we have to get to the bottom of this. We don't know
who's responsible, we have to have an investigation, and at that point
we can draw the conclusions.
QUESTION: You're not disputing though the facts or premise of Tony's
question, about the existence of terrorist cells in Yemen, in Aden,
are you?
DENNIS ROSS: There are groups that have existed in the past. We
certainly know that the Yemenis have made an effort to root them out,
but I think to draw conclusions at this point would be premature.
QUESTION: Mr. Ambassador, you've been a part of this process to try to
bring peace between Israelis and Palestinians going back into the Bush
years. You've been as much an architect as anyone of this process, in
this country, anyway. Let me ask you what you may now have learned,
that you didn't fully understand before about Yasser Arafat and the
Palestinians as negotiating partners, from the events of the last
several weeks, starting with his spurning of the extraordinary -- I
think everyone would agree -- concessions offered him by Ehud Barak at
Camp David.
DENNIS ROSS: Well, first, I think you have take a look at this process
for the last seven years. (inaudible). You've got two parties in play
here. As Yitzhak Rabin said, you don't pick your partner when you're
trying to end a conflict. The Israelis and Palestinians are neighbors,
they have to find a way to live together, they've been trying to do
that. What they've seen right now is what the future could look like.
History and geography have guaranteed that they don't have a choice --
they're going to be neighbors. So, the reality is, how do you find a
way to accommodate, how do you find a way to coexist? And that's what
they're trying to do, that's what we have to help them try to do, but
in the end, it's up to them.
QUESTION: I understand that, sir, but isn't it also the case that
while it's true, as Yitzhak Rabin famously said, you don't make peace
with your friends, that if you're going to make peace with someone who
either is or has been an enemy, that person must be equally interested
in doing so, prepared to accept extraordinary concessions, at least
make counter offers, and not in the wake of such extraordinary offers
foment violence, as it seems overwhelmingly obvious that he (Arafat)
did.
DENNIS ROSS: There's no question that in the end, two sides have to be
able to agree. There's no question that two sides have to be able to
put real offers on the table, and there's no question that both sides
have to be able to make big decisions.
QUESTION: Let me understand if I can take it from your answer that you
have not changed your assessment of Yasser Arafat as a potential peace
partner based on recent events?
DENNIS ROSS: What I would say is he's the head of the Palestinians. If
there is going to be agreement between the Israelis and the
Palestinians, they have to deal with the head. We're at a point where
over the last seven years, he's made some difficult decisions.
However, we're at a juncture where very difficult decisions have to be
made, and we will see if he's prepared to make those.
QUESTION: Precisely what difficult decisions has he made? What has he
conceded?
DENNIS ROSS: He made a basic decision, from a Palestinian standpoint,
to recognize Israelis, and to try to negotiate peace with them. Had he
not done that, he probably wouldn't have problems with Hamas. He does
have problems with Hamas, because they reject the idea of a
settlement. He's accepted the principle of a settlement. But you have
to translate that principle into reality. As I just said, he's made
big decisions in the past, but they are not as big as the ones he has
to make, and we will see if he's prepared to do that.
QUESTION: Is it the position of our government that the violence in
the Middle East can be attributed equally to both sides right now?
DENNIS ROSS: I think the position of our government is that there is a
cycle of violence that has to be broken. There's no question that the
Palestinians have to do more on their side to prevent the points of
confrontation. What we would like to see if they can do that, is that
the Israelis then restrain their use of live fire.
QUESTION: When Yasser Arafat called a general strike and also closed
the schools for a day right after Ariel Sharon had visited the Temple
Mount, what purpose could that have been other than to foment
violence?
DENNIS ROSS: Let's put it this way: at that juncture, the kinds of
steps that could have been taken by the Palestinians to bring this
under control were not taken. They have a responsibility to do all
they can to control violence. We've seen an effort made by them, but
they clearly have to do more.
QUESTION: Is the peace movement dead in Israel?
DENNIS ROSS: I think at this juncture, it's not so much that the peace
movement is dead, there is a great deal of distrust, there is a great
deal of I think concern about whether the process can produce what it
was intended to do. But I come back to a fundamental point: Israelis
and Palestinians are destined to live as neighbors. They can either
live in perpetual struggle, or they can find a way to coexist.
QUESTION: We have meetings this week in Sharm Al Sheikh, but it's
going to last one day. The one thing we want to get is a cease-fire?
DENNIS ROSS: We want to see the violence brought to an end. You can't
do anything unless you can restore calm. Maybe you can't do that all
at once, but we have to create an environment where there is
sufficient calm, sufficient stability, that you can then begin to
repair the wounds, you can build a bridge back to peacemaking. Right
now we have a psychology of confrontation and anger, and in effect
almost warfare.
QUESTION: We saw at Camp David the two leaders holed up there for more
than two weeks, and as Britt (Hume) has pointed out, Ehud Barak really
offered all he could. In Sharm Al Sheihk in one day, how can you
accomplish anything when, in an over two-week period at Camp David,
nothing happened?
Dennis Ross: We were trying to negotiate a peace settlement at Camp
David. Right now, we're trying to stop fighting. Right now, we're
trying to restore calm. Right now, we're trying to create a period
where both sides can get back to the idea of peacemaking. Right now,
the psychology is confrontation, it's not peacemaking. You can't flip
a switch, and suddenly go from confrontation to peacemaking. You're
going to have to create some kind of bridge from where we are to where
to where we need to be.
QUESTION: What do you expect to happen?
DENNIS ROSS: I think the most important thing is to see if we can get
a commitment on both sides not only to restore calm, but to see if we
can then construct a series of measures that will allow them to
sustain it over a period of time. Only then can you go back to
peacemaking.
QUESTION: If that doesn't happen, are we going to start pulling the
plug on aid to one or both sides?
DENNIS ROSS: Well, look, let's be very clear. We have a fundamental
strategic attachment to the state of Israel. This is a commitment that
is enduring, it is unshakeable. That is not going to alter, that is
not going to be changed.
QUESTION: But our relationship with the Palestinian Authority might?
DENNIS ROSS: We provide aid today for humanitarian projects. We
provide a very, very small amount of aid to the Palestinian Authority.
It is in our interest to assure that there is a certain quality of
life among Palestinians, so I think the idea of providing assistance
for education, or for housing, or for water or for sewage is something
that should continue.
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