Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak
Photo: AP
Egypt 'doing everything' to save peace talks
Speaking at a ceremony marking Yom Kippur War Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak says Israel, PA cannot afford to miss another chance for peace
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said Tuesday that his country "was sparing no effort to insure the Israeli-Palestinian peace process does not fall apart over the settlements. We want to make sure this chance for peace is not missed, like so many before it."
Cairo, he said, "Aspires for a just, comprehensive and viable peace, which would bring an end to the occupation of Palestinian and Arab territories, end the suffering of the Palestinian people and bring about the inception of an independent Palestinian state, with east Jerusalem as its capital."
Regional Efforts
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Minister Herzog meets King Abdullah in Amman; Jordanian leader stresses historic opportunity
Mubarak was speaking at a Cairo ceremony marking the 37th anniversary of Yom Kippur War.
The peace agreement between Israel and Egypt has proven that while difficult to achieve – peace is not impossible. "We in Egypt insisted the talks with Israel will focus on the borders issue, and we insisted that negotiations focus in Egypt's 1906 borders and that Sinai will be evacuated. Because of this… we stress that the direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians focus on final borders for the state of Palestine, since many other decisions will derive from that, including the (fate) of settlements."
Egypt, said Mubarak, will never lose the hope for peace. "We need peace in the Middle East so the generations to follow will enjoy a stable, peaceful region."
'Don't miss historic chance'
King Abdullah II of Jordan also urged the salvation of the nearly deadlocked talks. Abdullah spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Tuesday evening and stressed that "any and all action which threatens the peace process must be stopped, including and especially settlement construction.
"The region is in a critical stage and great effort will be needed to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, based on the two-state solution. This opportunity cannot be missed for the sake of future generation," a palace statement quoted his as saying
The two spoke following an earlier visit by Welfare Minister Yitzhak Herzog to Jordan. Herzog met with the king, who urged him to relay the message that Israel cannot afford to miss a moment of historic opportunity for peace.
Opposition Chairwoman Tzipi Livni (Kadima) meanwhile accused Netanyahu of "wasting two years by stalling on the negotiations. Now the government has to make decisions that would save what's left of the peace process."
AFP contributed to this report
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