Arabs want ME peace, not 'process'
Regional, Politics, 11/8/2001

Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa said yesterday that Arabs would not be "duped" by an artificial resumption of Middle East peace talks aimed solely at calming Muslim concerns over US strikes against Afghanistan.

Moussa, who heads the 22-strong group of Arab states, said "a process for the sake of a process" would only stoke up Arab frustration and anger.

"We are not ready to spend 10 more years entering into a vicious circle of talks and without results,' Moussa told reporters in London ahead of a meeting with British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw. "We are not going to be duped by the idea of a resumption of the peace process".

The United States and Britain, trying to rally Arab and Muslim support for the military campaign in Afghanistan against the perpetrators of the September 11 attacks, have stepped up efforts to end Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair, who toured the Middle East last week, have expressed support for the creation of a Palestinian state and called for a halt in yearlong violence to build trust between the two sides.

But Moussa said the time for modest confidence building measures was over, calling instead for a "full initiative" to resolve the Arab Israeli conflict.

"Small steps will not suffice," he said. "What would they say? That the Arab people will be glad and then they will support whatever is done by the big powers?

Nobody will buy that... Don't underestimate the intelligence of the Arab public opinion."

Moussa said that he hoped Washington's military campaign in Afghanistan "will end as soon as possible so that the Afghan people will be spared any future rigours of these attacks".

"Saudi-born militant Osama Bin Laden, chief suspect in the September 11 attacks should receive a fair trial," he added.

He also warned that any attempt to extend the military strikes beyond Afghanistan to Arab countries such as Iraq would break up the international coalition against terror.

Asked if the United States could justify an attack on Baghdad if it found evidence Iraq was linked to the anthrax letter campaign in the United States, he said links could emerge to many other countries.

"Are we going to attack the whole world? There are a lot of other ways and means-diplomatic, legal, financial (to take action)," he said.

Previous Stories:
  Egypt-US relations are strong   (11/7/2001)
  Washington denies plans for attacking countries other than Afghanistan   (11/7/2001)
  Euro-Mediterranean conference reaches consensus on fight against terrorism   (11/7/2001)

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