Abbas commends Bush efforts to establish ME peace

One day after his meeting with the American President George W. Bush, the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas commended Bush's efforts to reach peace in the Middle East and to support the national economy.

In a press statement before he departed to Canada where he will be meeting with the Canadian prime minister Paul Martin, Abbas expressed his opposition to the wall of seperation built by Israel in the West Bank, saying "instead of building walls, we should build bridges."

Abbas stressed the need of restoring negotiations channels with Israel in order to discuss final issues especially after the expected Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.