A rchive Date
[ 06-04-2002 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ U.S ]
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[http://canoe.ca/Canoe/canoecnews.html
Arafat not needed: Bush
Saturday, Apr. 06, 2002
CRAWFORD, Tex. (AP) - President George W. Bush said Friday the U.S. quest for peace in the Middle East can succeed without Palestinian President Yasser Arafat because "there are others in the region who can lead."
He also said Iraqi President Saddam Hussein "needs to go" and he was confident he could build a coalition to make that happen.
Bush made his strong comments before beginning weekend talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, a supporter of his Middle East policies. As Israel kept up its military offensive, the White House avoided criticizing it for not immediately following Bush's urgent request to pull back its forces.
The Middle East crisis and, to a lesser extent, Iraq are expected to dominate weekend talks between Bush and Blair.
The prime minister, who flew from Britain as the country was mourning the death of the Queen Mother, was wearing a dark suit and tie when he stepped off a marine helicopter at Bush's ranch. Bush, wearing blue jeans and work boots, drove Blair from the scene in a white pickup truck.
Blair's wife, Cherie, plans to arrive Saturday.
Blair was having dinner Friday night at the ranch with the president and his wife, Laura. Bush invited Blair to join him for a top-secret CIA briefing Saturday.
On Arafat, Bush said the Palestinian leader has repeatedly failed to keep his promises to stem terrorism and hasn't earned U.S. trust.
"He has let his people down and there are others in the region who can lead," Bush said, naming Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and King Abdullah of Jordan.
"So Colin Powell is going to go to the region to gather those leaders up and to start a process, hopefully, that will lead to lasting peace," Bush said in a pre-meeting interview with Britain's ITV network.
Aides indicated Bush's comments were meant to be seen as a signal that he has decided to distance himself from Arafat and rely on other Arab leaders to bring peace.
On Thursday, Bush urged Arab leaders such as Mubarak to fill a void left by Arafat - and senior administration officials said U.S. Secretary of State Powell may meet with other Palestinian leaders.
In the interview, Bush dismissed the "silly notion" he hasn't been involved enough in the Middle East. He also said Israel-Palestinian talks led by former president Bill Clinton at Camp David, Md., in 2000 led to more violence.
"We've tried summits in the past, as you may remember," Bush said when asked why he was sending Powell on Sunday, instead of personally trying to organize a peace summit.
"It wasn't all that long ago where a summit was called and nothing happened and as a result we had significant intefadeh in the area," Bush said.
When White House spokesman Ari Fleischer expressed a similar view recently, it was seen as a criticism of Clinton. Under pressure from the Democrat's former advisers, Bush aides had Fleischer renounce the statement.
Terrorism, particularly Bush's plans for Iraq, originally was to be the prime topic for the meetings with Blair but the rush of events in the Middle East has put that issue on a back burner.
Still, when asked during the ITV interview, Bush said of the Iraqi leader: "I made up my mind that Saddam needs to go."
He said he and Blair would discuss "all options" with respect to Iraq. Long-held U.S. policy is Saddam should be ousted but Bush did not say how that might be accomplished.
"Just wait and see," he said.
Bush said he is confident he can build a coalition to "deal with Saddam Hussein," who he believes aids terrorists and harbours weapons of mass destruction.
Previewing the weekend talks, Blair said things look grim in the Middle East.
"We will obviously be looking at ideas that can lead to a ceasefire," he said aboard his plane en route to Texas.
"There can be few grounds for optimism at the moment."
A rare bright spot, he said: "I don't believe that either the Palestinian Authority or Israel really wish to be in the position they are in at the moment."
In the region Friday, U.S. mediator Anthony Zinni met with Arafat at his besieged headquarters, even as the region saw its bloodiest day of fighting since the beginning of the week-old Israeli military offensive.
Still, Fleischer withheld criticism of Israel.
"Major events don't necessarily happen overnight," he said.
U.S. officials have privately said since Thursday they have been given assurances by Israel the incursions will soon end.
On Iraq, Blair is expected to press for diplomatic action, rather than military steps, and to make Afghanistan and the Middle East higher priorities. He has come under pressure within his own Labour party to withhold support from Bush.
Blair's spokesman assured the British media this week the prime minister was not going to Texas to "sign on the dotted line" of any U.S. plan for Iraq.
The visit by Blair, a staunch supporter since the beginning of Bush's presidency, is a welcome event for the president, who has been criticized by some allies and U.S. legislators for not doing more to try and stop the Middle East violence.
The visit, once envisioned as a boots-and-barbecue huddle of friends, promised to be a low-key affair because of the Middle East crisis and the death of the Queen Mother.
White House advisers cancelled plans to let news cameras show the president and prime minister at play - fishing or hiking - on the president's 650-hectare spread.
The leaders also plan to discuss NATO expansion, the war in Afghanistan and their differences over trade
 World Fact Book (CIA)]
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