WASHINGTON – President Bush, after meeting with Jordan’s King Abdullah at the White House yesterday, assured Palestinians they’ll take part in final negotiations with Israel over Middle East territory.
“And the United States will not prejudice the outcome of those negotiations,” Bush said.
“The ‘road map’ is the best path to realizing the two-state vision,” Bush said, referring to his call for a Palestinian state negotiated with Israel.
Bush said that, following the Jordanian king’s advice, he will take various steps to reach out to the Palestinians, including sending a letter to Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia to express his desire for the Palestinian people to be free and prosperous.
“We will expand dialogue between the United States and Palestinians,” Bush said.
Abdullah, who advised Bush on the message to send to the Palestinians, said, “All final-status issues should be a matter for the parties to decide.”
Still, despite his overtures to the Palestinians, Bush repeated his support for Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s plan to pull 7,500 Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip and withdraw from parts of the West Bank.
Bush also did not say anything contradicting his recent pledges to Sharon that Israel does not have to withdraw from all the lands it occupied after the 1967 war and that Palestinian refugees should return to settle in a future Palestinian state, not Israel.