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Thursday, October 23, 1997
President Mubarak has said Egypt would decide at the eleventh hour whether it would attend a controversial regional economic conference slated for November coming in Doha, Qatar. "We will monitor the situation until the last minute and we will decide three or Four days before the conference," the Egyptian leader said in an interview published yesterday in the Arabic-language newspaper "Al Hayat". Many Arab countries have made their participation in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) conference, to which Israel is invited, conditional on achieving progress in the Middle East peace process. "A miracle might happen, but what is the use of holding a conference if all parties are turning their backs on each other?" wondered Mubarak. "The idea of the economic conference is to promote peace in the region. But the current situation is very complicated and the current Israeli government's policy has generated a highly tense situation and casts doubts over the future of the peace process." said Mubarak "This climate was not the same when similar conferences were convened. When the conference was held in Egypt last year, we had different views, some supported it and some stood opposed. But after consultations with officials, businessmen and other figures, I found out it was beneficial to have it held." The MENA conference is the fourth since the idea was conceived at a 1991 Arab-Israeli peace parley in Madrid. In addition to Egypt, the gathering was held in Morocco and Jordan in 1994 and 1995 respectively. "As for the Doha conference, there are differences in the Arab world on the use of its convocation. Some Arab countries have announced they would stay away, while others have yet to state their final stands," added Mubarak. The Egyptian leader told the London-based newspaper that he had lost faith in Israeli Premier Netanyahu. "On our side, we have done our utmost. I met Netanyahu several times after he assumed power… and each time promised to fulfil agreements signed, but he hasn’t. He has not implemented the Hebron agreement his government had signed with the Palestinians. How then can we trust a person who does not honour agreements he has himself signed?!" inquired Mubarak. "The situation is very complicated. But we remain concerned with the peace process in the interest of the entire region. And the wheel of peace could be set into motion if the US used its contacts with Israel," said Mubarak. ponding to a question on whether Tehran should take the first step to re-establish normal ties with Cairo. "The US has been a partner to the peace process since its initiation. And there is no way out unless the US makes more efforts to convince Israel of the importance of honouring and implementing the signed accords and halting conflicting policies, notably the settlement policy," he said. Palestinian-Israeli negotiations have been stalled for long months over the Jewish state's settlement expansion. On Tuesday, US peace envoy Dennis Ross managed to bring Israelis and Palestinians for their highest-level security talks in months. Further talks are scheduled in Washington later this month. The Likud-led government in Israel is going ahead with one-sided steps and changing realities on the ground, said Mubarak. "Both Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and slain ex-Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin had agreed not to change anything on the ground. But the Netatnyahu government does not abide by this, and continuing one-sided changes, snubbing coordination with the Palestinian Authority." Mubarak said he was keeping constant consultations and coordination with King Hussein of Jordan. "When the issue of (the bungled) attempt on the life of Khaled Meshal occurred in Amman, King Hussein briefed me on the details." Israel risked a damage of ties with Jordan when two Mossad agents had attempted murder on Meshel, the Hamas political leader in Amman, and the scandal prompted the exchange of the two arrested agents for 70 Palestinian prisoners, including Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the spiritual leader of Hamas . President Mubarak said he saw eye to eye with the Jordanian monarch over his declaration that he had lost faith in Netanyahu but Israelis had to be won over for the peace process. " We have to deal with the Israeli people if we want peace. Peace is not for Arabs only. It is also for the Israeli citizen... We care about the life of every Israeli as we do about the life of every Arab. That's why we always affirm that peace is the only way to fulfil peace for all. I have explained this to Netanyahu. But he is still insisting on putting security ahead of peace. And this impossible and will only lead to undermine security and peace together." Meanwhile, the Egyptian leader said the leaked reports about alleged Egyptian involvement in the disappearance of a Libyan defector was an attempt to put pressures on Egypt. "We don't know how the Libyan dissident Kikhia had left Egypt. Nor do we know to where the North Korean ambassador left. He left Egypt and we don't know how. We have one thousand Libyan opponents here and no-one is harmed. Raising the issue this way and in this time is a bid to pressure us," he added. A published report by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has recently claimed Egyptian agents had been involved in the abduction of Kikhia and handed him over to Tripoli to execute "I think the issue was raised as an answer to the jailing of Israeli spy Azam Azam. And probably Israeli’s supporters in the US sought to use the Kikhia story to secure the release of Azam." Mubarak said the US had not demanded the release of the Israeli spy sentenced by an Egyptian court to 15 years in jail. The Egyptian leader, furthermore, ruled out amnesty for the Israeli spy. Mubarak hoped that the growing Israeli-Turkish ties would not target Syria and said he had assurances front President Suleyman Demirel to this effect. "I talked to the Turkish President, and told him we had ties with Israel, and that the Turkish-Israeli relations should not be against any Arab country such as Syria... The Turkish President assured me that Turkey is not against anyone and gave me promises. I hope this would be Ok, though the picture is not clear yet." He said there were no official contacts with Iran after the inauguration of the new President Mohamed Khatami. "Egypt had not one day sought to do harm to its ties with Iran... And I could send delegates from Egypt to attend the Islamic. conference there. But I want to feel sure that the terrorist operations and the like are over," Mubarak was responding to a question on whether Tehran should take the first step to re-establish normal ties with Cairo. |
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