28 May 2003
Bush Looks Forward to Planned Meeting with Sharon, Abbas
(White House Report, May 28, 2003: Middle East, Iran, Russia) (650)
After announcing that President Bush would travel to Aqaba, Jordan, on
June 4 for a meeting, "conditions permitting," with Israeli Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas,
the White House called the prospect of the meetings "a positive
development."
The message Bush would take to the planned meeting is the importance
of Israelis and Palestinians working together to make progress on the
"road map" -- a plan to allow Israel and a new Palestinian state to
live side by side in peace and security -- White House spokesman Ari
Fleischer told reporters May 28.
"The president's focus is on results," Fleischer said. "The
president's focus is on the bottom line and working with people who
can achieve results. And that's why the president looks forward to
this meeting."
He said the planned meeting comes at "a hopeful moment," but added
that the problem in the Middle East is that "hopeful moments can get
derailed." Fleischer said Bush is a president "who is determined to
find these hopeful moments and make the most out of them."
"In the Middle East, where progress is often difficult, it's important
to make the progress that can be made today, and not attempt to make
too much of an attempt for progress, when that may be beyond reach
immediately," Fleischer told reporters. "But it is important at the
end of the day for the Arab world to recognize Israel and to welcome
Israel and to allow Israel to live in security. And Israel needs to
have good relations with its Arab neighbors."
Fleischer referred to Abbas as the "representative of the Palestinian
people at this meeting." Asked about the role of Palestinian Authority
Chairman Yasser Arafat, Fleischer said "The President's views on
Yasser Arafat are well-known and clear. I don't see any need to
reiterate them. The President looks forward to the meeting with
somebody who he believes is dedicated to peace."
Fleischer said Bush will stress the U.S. commitment to Israel's
security. "Clearly, in an atmosphere of violence and killing, it is
much harder to reach peace agreements when people are dying on a
regular basis as a result of homicide bombers," he said.
BUSH TO CONFRONT RUSSIA ON AIDING IRAN
When President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet in St.
Petersburg, Russia, May 30 prior to the G-8 summit in France, the two
leaders are expected to discuss Russian assistance to Iran's nuclear
program.
"This has been a matter that we have talked with the Russians about,"
White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said May 28. "They are
looking at this, and have made some new statements about this which
are welcome. And I anticipate that some of that may be talked about."
Russian assistance to Iran's nuclear fuel cycle program "has been a
matter of some dispute between the United States and Russia,"
Fleischer had previously said May 27.
"We have repeatedly raised with Russian officials at the highest
levels, including President Bush with President Putin, our desire to
see Russia end all nuclear cooperation with Iran," he said.
He said Russia joins the United States in supporting the International
Atomic Energy Agency's ongoing inspections of Iran's nuclear program
and looks forward to the full report from the IAEA director-general in
June.
In his May 28 briefing Fleischer cited a May 27 statement from the
Russian Foreign Ministry which said that Russia, "expressed concern
over the existence of serious unclarified issues in connection with
nuclear research in Iran, and pointed to the need for an exhaustive
discussion of that problem by the IAEA board of governors in June, and
early signing of additional protocol to the agreement on IAEA
safeguards."
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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