Madame Chairperson,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We stand before a moment that we hope will be historic …
It is in our hands to make it both a historic and definitive moment.
If we are resolute in our desire to reach peace. And if our participation in today's meeting and our presence around the negotiating table is sincere… And if we are determined to achieve, in good faith, a comprehensive settlement to the Arab-Israeli conflict, at the core of which lies the Palestinian Question in its entirety … Only then could this moment be truly historic and be recorded as the actual inauguration of negotiations on core issues that have been delayed since the Oslo Accords.. fourteen years ago.
Ladies and Gentlemen
It is impossible, even for the imperious, to disregard the devastating effect of the Arab-Israeli conflict – and especially the Palestinian Question – on peace, security and stability, not only in the Middle East, but throughout the world. This is a matter that does not tolerate further delay or procrastination … The tension and polarization that prevails in the Middle East and that is being felt world-wide cannot be overlooked.
Madame Chairperson,
As we approach the end of the 7th year of the 21st Century, I do not believe that anyone accepts that the idea of foreign military occupation can be tolerated or acquiesced to. It should not be acceptable that a people controls another people's destiny … or that a society controls another society's land through military might … or that an entity imposes on another entity a 'fait accompli' for the mere reason that it possesses the tools of subjugation and suppression. To bet on the feasibility of occupation is to bet against the weight of history, because independence and freedom are the natural state of mankind. Oppression and coercion are repugnant practices of bygone eras which we must collaborate to combat from mindsets and deracinate from the ground.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The peace that the Arabs aspire to, like the peace that Egypt initiated with Israel, is that which is based on justice and equity. Fundamentally, justice means equality, parity and forgoing notions of superiority and hegemony. It means respecting international legitimacy and international law to which all must be subject and the UN resolutions pertinent to this historic conflict. This is a peace founded on equity and balance … A step is to be met by a commensurate step … an obligation is to be met by an obligation … security is to be met by security … Land should be exchanged for peace. This is the peace that could stand the test of time and that could achieve the aspiration of the international community for the integration of Israel in the Middle East.
Otherwise, the perpetuation of bygone notions and procrastination and the diversion of public opinion by negotiations that remain idle for years … whilst entrenching illegal realities on the ground … are measures that no longer deceive neither the citizens, nor the decision makers nor those who implement those decisions.
Seriousness is the key to a solution.
The defrauded will not forget his rights and shall not forego them … and this conflict shall continue to present the world with pain and predicament and perpetuate and desire for violence and the use of force as long as the international community cannot reach a just and comprehensive solution to it.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The terms of reference that were included in the invitation letter to this meeting are those that Egypt accepts and recognizes:
First: Security Council Resolutions 242, 338, 1397, 1515 are all resolutions that uphold the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and the creation of a Palestinian State on the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel following June 4th 1967.
Second: The Principle of Land for Peace, which was coined by the United States during the negotiations between Egypt and Israel at the end of the 1970's, is a formulation that is acceptable to the Arabs for instituting just peace in the region.
Third: The Arab Peace Initiative, which provides Israel with a strategic vision of its position in the region should it conform to the will of the international community and return the occupied Palestinian and Arab lands to their rightful owners and reach a settlement to this conflict.
Fourth: The Road Map, which is a document that outlines the obligations of both parties on the path of establishing the independent Palestinian State.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
For the negotiating process to have the requisite seriousness, it is important for Israel to undertake measures to raise the level of confidence in its intentions and practices. Primary among these measures is to effectuate a complete freeze on settlement activities, freezing the construction of the separation Wall, the release of large numbers of Palestinian detainees and prisoners, lifting the barriers and checkpoints in the West Bank and allowing for the reopening of Palestinian institutions in East Jerusalem.
I do not think I need to reiterate the well recorded Egyptian firm legal and political opposition to Israel's settlement policy in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. This is a policy which, in our view, undermines any serious possibility to achieve the just and equitable peace that I have spoken of. In this vein, I sincerely hope that the latest Israeli announcement on freezing settlement activities is serious and real, and that it is implemented on the ground. If it is so, it would be an important and positive development in Israel's intentions of withholding territory. We further hope that Israel recognizes the gravity of the situation as regards the Separation Wall being constructed on the Occupied Palestinian Territories and the necessity of halting any future construction in it and removing the segments already constructed. Such a change in Israeli thinking and practices would represent a true indication on the basis of which we can ascertain the measure of seriousness of Israel's commitment to reach the desired peace.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Even if the statements delivered this morning by the Palestinian President and the Israeli Prime Minister, and their talks during the past weeks, indicate the continuation of disagreements on many issues, they also testify as to the resolve and seriousness of both parties that can be built upon in order to conclude a successful negotiations process in accordance with a clear specific timeline. Egypt feels this timeline can come to fruition within a few months, possibly eight months. After all, solutions to the remaining issues do exist … we need not reinvent them … what is required is the courage to uphold our responsibilities.
In this regard, the international community must assume a critical role, not only through encouraging the parties to pursue the path of peace despite the internal and international pressures to which they will be exposed, but also by providing the substantial monetary and material assistance required for the Palestinian society to rehabilitate its institutions and to rejuvenate its economy to create employment opportunities and to foster an environment conducive to reaching a peaceful settlement. On its part, Egypt shall continue in its efforts to assist the parties to overcome the remaining obstacles to a settlement in a manner that is consistent with its commitment to support the Palestinian people's endeavor to achieve a just settlement without forfeiting the principles and the tenets of our position that we have espoused and reiterated throughout the past decades.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Whilst the Palestinian question remains at the heart of the Arab-Israeli conflict, and its resolution is a sine qua non to a comprehensive peace in the region, we should always be mindful that the Peace Process also includes two other important tracks, namely the Syrian and the Lebanese tracks which must be resumed expeditiously and with commensurate vigor and seriousness. Negotiations on these tracks should endeavor to reinstate to both these Arab states their occupied territories, paving the way for a comprehensive peace in the Middle East, as stipulated in the Arab Peace Initiative.
Madame Chairperson,
Allow me to applaud your persistent efforts to convene this meeting and to invite you to continue and intensify these efforts, and to utilize all the means available to you and to the United States to assist the parties to commence a serious, concerted and uninterrupted process of negotiations during the upcoming months with a view to reaching the long-awaited settlement during the next year. I would also like to renew, before you, Egypt's unwavering commitment to continue its serious and determined efforts to realize this invaluable objective.
This is a moment that could be truly historic … let us commence our work to make it so.
Thank you
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