Rice, Livni: Stick to Road Map steps

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice refuted on Saturday evening estimations that she planned to skip over certain stages of the Road Map to advance the formation of a Palestinian state. During her meeting with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni the two made clear that no steps would be passed over. "

My statements were misunderstood," said Livni at the beginning of the meeting. "I support a dialogue, but not giving up on stages."

American weekly 'Time' magazine wrote in its last issue that Rice will focus her efforts on skipping the first step towards achieving a permanent agreement with Palestinian moderates.

Livni said, "We will continue with our efforts. The objective is clear, two states living side-by-side in peace. The elections in the Palestinian Authority have made matters more complicated. Our responsibility is to give the Palestinians a political horizon as well as to provide safety to Israelis in Sderot. I want to personally thank the US Secretary of State for her determination and understanding."

Livni and Rice in Jerusalem on Saturday (Photo: Gil Yohanan)

During the press conference, Rice said that today was an important day and a challenging time for the Middle East. Rice said she believed that most Palestinians wanted to live in a place where their children could live in peace and security. She also said that amongst other thingsm she and Livni would discuss matters pertaining to Iran and Iraq, as well as how to advance the Road Map plan.

Rice met with Defense Minister Amir Peretz and Strategic Affairs Minister Avigodr Lieberman earlier in the day.

Deputy Defense Minister Ephraim Sneh, senior security advisor Amos Gilad, and IDF Intelligence Chief Amos Yadlin all participated in Defense Minister Amir Peretz's meeting with Secretary Rice, although Peretz's office refused to elaborate on the matter.

'If we act in Gaza – NATO will have to send troops'

Rice also met with Strategic Affairs Minister Avigdor Lieberman prior to her dinner meeting with Livni. Lieberman told US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that it is only a matter of time until the next military operation in Gaza.

Lieberman said that in the event of such an operation – a force of some 30,000 NATO soldiers would be required to maintain the operation's achievements. The two also spoke of efforts to release kidnapped soldier Cpl. Gilad Shalit.

Peretz's office did not deny that one of the topics discussed was Peretz's new political initiative. Peretz asked the secretary to keep the issue of the kidnapped Israeli soldiers on the international agenda.

The two also discussed ways to stop extremist forces such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Hizbullah from gaining strength. The Peretz-Rice meeting lasted over an hour, beyond its original timeframe. Rice will meet on Sunday with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and on Monday with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

Prior to her departure from Washington, Rice told reporters accompanying her that she believed there were "new options" for peace in the Middle East in the situation created following the last war in Lebanon and the stance of the moderate Arab states against extremist countries like Iran and Syria .

Awkward journalism

The Rice-Livni meeting held an unpleasant surprise for Rice when an American journalist asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as she met Foreign Affairs Minister Tzipi Livni in Jerusalem on Saturday evening to comment on statements made in the US regarding Rice's marital status and whether being single and childless impaired her ability to make decisions about Iraq. Rice answered in response that the fact that she has no children does not weaken her ability to understand the victims.

The journalist then attributed Livni with being single but was corrected by Secretary Rice who noted that Livni is married and has children. The incident greatly embarrassed those in attendance.

During her visit to Israel, Rice was expected to push the Saudi Mideast peace initiative. Rice stated that all the countries interested in the establishment of a Palestinian state must reach an agreement on the way to achieve it. She added that the United States was committed to being fully involved, but that it could not succeed its own.

However, despite Rice's expected talks with Palestinian Authority leaders, Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh on Saturday accused the United States and Israel of working to divide the Palestinian people and thwarting the establishment of a unity government in the Palestinian Authority.