De voortekens voor de vredesconferentie in november lijken niet erg gunstig, en het valt zelfs nog te bezien of hij überhaupt doorgaat, daar de Palestijnen het eerst eens willen zijn over de hoofdpunten van een vredesovereenkomst, terwijl Israël niet verder wil gaan dan een principeverklaring. Publiekelijk houdt de PA vast aan een volledige Israëlische terugtrekking - zelfs uit Jeruzalem - en recht op terugkeer van de vluchtelingen etc.
Afblazen van de bijeenkomst zou vooral voor Bush en Rice een afgang betekenen; misschien daarom denkt Abbas hoge eisen te kunnen stellen ondanks zijn zwakke positie. Naar verluid heeft Condoleezza Rice aan Abbas beloofd om meer druk op Israël te zetten. Dat zij ook hem onder flinke druk heeft gezet wordt niet vermeld.
Mogelijk zijn de Palestijnen in de eigenlijke onderhandelingen inschikkelijker, maar mij lijkt niet dat ze straks een compromis aan de achterban kunnen verkopen dat al te zeer contrasteert met de publieke vasthoudendheid nu.
Abbas heeft een overeenkomst veel harder nodig dan Olmert, omdat de Palestijnen eindelijk weer een perspectief moeten krijgen op verbetering van hun situatie en een eigen staat. Olmert zal daarentegen zeker geen grote concessies kunnen verkopen aan zijn achterban, temeer daar de PA momenteel niets in ruil te bieden heeft. Meer dan een mooie - maar niet onbelangrijke - principeverklaring als basis voor verdere onderhandelingen, alsmede wat kleinere maatregelen van Israël om de situatie van de Palestijnen te verbeteren, zit er niet in. De andere Arabische deelnemers aan de conferentie zouden Israël in ruil een concreet perspectief moeten bieden op een einde aan de ruim 60 jaar oude afwijzing van de Joodse staat.
Wouter
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PA wants 'sweeping deal' before summit
KHALED ABU TOAMEH and MARK WEISS , THE JERUSALEM POST - Oct. 2, 2007
The Palestinians will only participate in the US-sponsored peace conference expected to be held next month if general agreement is first reached with Israel on all the fundamental issues, Palestinian Authority officials here said Monday.
They said that in addition to Jerusalem, the borders of the future Palestinian state and the problem of the refugees, the PA was also seeking agreement on water, security and settlements.
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The officials also denied that the PA had agreed to discuss an exchange of land with Israel and limiting the number of refugees who would return to Israel proper. They said the PA's official position remained that Israel must withdraw from all the territories captured in 1967, including east Jerusalem, and that there would be no concessions on the "right of return."
PA negotiator Saeb Erekat said he was unaware of any land swap agreement. He called on the media to refrain from publishing any unofficial documents or unauthorized statements.
One official told The Jerusalem Post the Palestinians were convinced that a joint declaration of principles could be achieved before the conference.
"We're not asking for a detailed agreement, but at least let's agree on the principles of the final settlement," the official said. "We have four to six weeks to strike a deal. Let's not waste time."
"We're not asking for a detailed agreement, but at least let's agree on the principles of the final settlement," the official said. "We have four to six weeks to strike a deal. Let's not waste time."
According to another PA official, the Palestinians want the declaration of principles to include an Israeli commitment to withdraw to the pre-1967 borders. "As President Mahmoud Abbas stated last week, we have no intention to compromise on any of our rights," he said.
Asked why the PA, which in recent weeks had expressed reservations about the conference, was now sounding more positive, the official said: "When [US Secretary of State] Condoleezza Rice was here lately, she told us that the US administration was determined to turn the conference into a successful event. She also promised to exert pressure on Israel to soften its position."
The negotiating teams will meet Wednesday, when Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is scheduled to host Abbas in his succa at the Prime Minister's Residence.
Contacts have already taken place, including discussions between the two leaders and between their foreign ministers, on what kind of joint document should be presented to the conference, set to take place in Annapolis, Maryland, in mid-November.
Contacts have already taken place, including discussions between the two leaders and between their foreign ministers, on what kind of joint document should be presented to the conference, set to take place in Annapolis, Maryland, in mid-November.
There has been no agreement on how specific the joint document should be. The Palestinians want a detailed framework agreement, while Israel wants a shorter, more general statement.
"We're negotiating with Israel, and after that there will be an agreement, which we will carry to the international conference to be blessed, adopted and endorsed, and then detailed negotiations shall begin," Abbas told reporters following closed-door talks with Jordan's King Abdullah II in Amman.
He said at least 12 Arab countries had agreed to send representatives to the conference. "There will be a very strong Arab presence at the conference," Abbas said after holding talks with Jordan's King Abdullah. "In addition, there will be some Islamic countries like Malaysia, Turkey and Indonesia."
In the meeting with Abbas, Jordan's king urged Israel to take "confidence-building steps," which he said should include assisting Abbas and laying out a "specific agenda for the final status negotiations," according to a royal palace statement.
Abdullah expressed hope that the international conference would have a "practical and tangible outcome that would lead to a just settlement and set forth a new era of joint Palestinian-Israeli coexistence."
AP contributed to this report.
