Clinton: Palestinians are meeting their obligation in the Wye accord

Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said that Palestinian President Yasser Arafat received a written message from US President Bill Clinton in which he promised to exert his utmost efforts to assure the implementation of the Wye River accord.

Erekat described the American statement, which he said assured the Palestinians' implementation of all their commitments, as being decisive, frank and directing accusations at the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, giving it responsibility for not implementing its commitments laid out in the Wye River agreement.

These statements come as the Israeli Cabinet yesterday decided not to implement Israeli obligations under the Wye River agreement until the Palestinian government implements a list of conditions that include abandoning any Palestinian intentions to unilaterally declare an independent state and to declare Jerusalem as the capitol of the Palestinian state, halting violence and incitement, collecting and removing illegal weapons and maintaining security cooperation. The Cabinet statement also said that Israel would not release Palestinian prisoners "with blood on their hands," a major sticking point between the two sides.

"Israel will complete implementation of its commitments in the process when the Palestinian Authority fulfills its commitments.," the Cabinet statement said.

Erekat said, "When the American administration says we have implemented what we should, Netanyahu must reconsider the pretexts" he uses to stop implementing his commitment.