Military

DATE=10/23/2000

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

NUMBER=2-268338

TITLE=CLINTON-MIDEAST (L)

BYLINE=DAVID GOLLUST

DATELINE=WHITE HOUSE

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: The White House is continuing to press the leaders of Israel and the Palestinians to implement pledges made to President Clinton last week at the Sharm El-Sheikh summit to defuse the Mideast crisis. President Clinton discusses the situation Tuesday with Jordan's King Abdullah. More from VOA's David Gollust at the White House.

TEXT: The administration has brokered two summit meetings this month between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat that failed to end the violence.

But spokesman Jake Seiwert insists President Clinton retains a great deal of influence in the region and persuasive ability, despite the setbacks. Seiwert says the president will continue pressing the leaders to implement promises they made to him last week in Egypt to pull back from armed confrontation.

/// SIEWERT ACT ///

Our priority, our focus now is on ending the bloodshed. We think it's important for both sides to implement the security provisions of Sharm El-Sheikh. That's the only real way to end the violence there. That's a point the President made in his phone calls over the weekend to Chairman Arafat, to Prime Minister Barak, and that's a message we'll continue to deliver as we consult with parties in the region over the next couple of days. In the end, it's important that they find a pathway back to the political process, into the peace process.

/// END ACT ///

Mr. Clinton had two weekend conversations with Mr. Barak and one with Chairman Arafat, and will discuss the situation here Tuesday with Jordan's visiting King Abdullah, who attended both the Sharm El-Sheikh summit and the emergency Arab League summit in Cairo.

That meeting ended Sunday with a statement condemning Israel for what were termed atrocities against Palestinians and urging the United Nations to set up a war crimes inquiry on Israeli actions.

White House spokesman Siewert called the language of the Arab summit communiqué "harsh and unhelpful," but said it did reaffirm the necessity of a peaceful solution of the crisis.

King Abdullah will discuss the situation in the region with Mr. Clinton prior to a White House ceremony for the signing of a far-reaching U-S-Jordanian trade agreement.

The accord does away with virtually all tariffs and other barriers to bilateral trade, and makes Jordan only the fourth nation to have free-trade status with the United States - the others being Mexico, Canada and Israel. (Signed)

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