Mubarak, Arafat discuss outcome of Palestinian-Israeli talks
Amidst an atmosphere of anticipation of the outcome of the peace process on the Palestinian Israeli track following negotiations held between Palestinian and Israeli sides in Eilat last week, President Mubarak today receives Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat for briefing Mubarak on the outcome of the first round of negotiations.
Arafat will brief Mubarak on the obstacles raised before the implementation of agreements and the outcome of his latest meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak in Ramallah.
Zohdi Al-Qedrah, the Ambassador of Palestine in Cairo, said President Arafat would brief President Mubarak on the outcome of his latest visit to France and his meeting with both President Jacques Chirac and the Portuguese Prime Minister, the current chairman of the European Union.
He said Arafat's visit to Cairo comes within the framework of sustained coordination and consultations between Presidents Mubarak and Arafat for solving the problems and exchanging views on obstacles hindering the peace process on the Palestinian track.
The Palestinian ambassador hailed contacts between Presidents Mubarak and Arafat, saying these contacts acquire a strategic significance as they are not restricted to bilateral relations between the PNA and Egypt but rather go beyond them to tackle inter-Arab relations.
He said Egypt could not abandon peace under any circumstances and is seeking to rally support for the Palestinian cause.
Moussa said as we approach the final stage on the Palestinian track and the establishment of peace in the region, difficulties emerge, indicated that offers made by Israel at Eilat negotiations could not be accepted by the Palestinians who could not accept deficient solution or sovereignty after a long history of struggle and negotiations.
Egypt's top diplomat said Israel could not, because of the current international circumstances, impose de facto policy nor could it impose a solution on Arabs, stressing that this policy is rejected because it could not be accepted by influential powers in the world as this would mean losing the context of the peace agreement.
Moussa said Egypt could not have signed peace accord with Israel if Israel had not agreed on withdrawal from all Egyptian territories adding this is the same stance of Syria. he said there is no justification for an Arab country to offer a plot of its land as a present to Israel.
Moussa said if Israel is willing to establish security measures, these measures should be binding to both sides so that each one of them may feel security.
Reporting from the US Capital, Al-Ahram reports that US President Bill Clinton has expressed his confidence that an agreement would be reached between Israel and the Palestinians before September 13.
He said he is working to reactivate peace efforts in order to reach an agreement though he realizes that disagreements between the two sides are deep.
The US President is currently devoting his effort to reviewing a report offered by Dennis Ross, the US coordinator of the peace process, who took part in the latest Eilat negotiations, an Egyptian statement said.