Bush Says US Remains Committed to Mideast Roadmap

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, September 11, 2003

Bush Says US Remains Committed to Mideast Roadmap

US President George W. Bush said Wednesday that the United States remains committed to the Middle East "roadmap" peace plan despite a fresh cycle of violence between Israelis and Palestinians.

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US President George W. Bush said Wednesday that the United States remains committed to the Middle East "roadmap" peace plan despite a fresh cycle of violence between Israelis and Palestinians.

"I still believe strongly that two states (Israel and Palestine)living side by side in peace is a hopeful vision for the future of the Middle East. The road map is still there," Bush told reporters when meeting with Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah in the Oval Office.

"The fundamental question is whether or not peaceful people will be on the road. And one of the essential tenets of the roadmap is that people are responsible, parties need to be responsible for creating the conditions necessary for peace to prevail," he said.

He said Palestinian prime minister-designate Ahmed Qurei's job is to consolidate power within his administration to get all the Palestinian security forces under control and unleash those forces against terrorist groups.

Only in this way can progress be made in moving forward the peace process, Bush noted.

Meanwhile, Bush said, Israel also has responsibilities not only to protect its own people but to create the conditions necessary for those in the Palestinian Authority who do believe in peace, who do believe in the vision of two states, to prevail.

"It's tough times there now. ...But the vision is still there, because I strongly believe it's in the interest of everybody that two states live side by side in peace," he said.

Talking about a new US-proposal UN Security Council resolution aimed at broader international participation in rebuilding Iraq, Bush said the United States is hopeful that it can get a "good resolution."

He said he does not think France and Germany are opposed to such a resolution but may want to try fine-tune the US-proposed draft. "We're listening, we're open for suggestion," Bush said.

"My call, however, to nations is that let us not get caught up in past bickering, let us move forward," he said.

"A free Iraq is in everybody's interest. A peaceful Iraq is in the world's interest. And I'm confident we can work together to achieve that," Bush added.

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