Bush urges Israeli occupation end

Bottle_of_Smoke

Article wrote:

US President George W Bush has said Israel must end its occupation of some Arab land to enable the creation of a viable Palestinian state.
He also urged a solution to the issue of Palestinian refugees that would involve paying them compensation.

It is thought to be Mr Bush's strongest public statement pressing Israel to give up land it seized in the 1967 war.

He was speaking in Jerusalem following two days of separate talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders.

He has been trying to encourage the two sides into peace talks, and says he wants a peace deal signed by the time he leaves office in January 2009.

Mr Bush said in a statement: "It is vital that each side understands that satisfying the other's fundamental objectives is key to a successful agreement."

He said this would require:

secure recognised and defensible borders for Israel
a viable, contiguous, sovereign and independent Palestinian state
He added: "Agreement must establish Palestine as a homeland for the Palestinian people just as Israel is a homeland for the Jewish people."

Stern warning

Mr Bush did not give details of precisely what a final agreement might contain - he said that would be a matter for the talks.

But his statement set out some parameters within which he expected negotiators to work.

These included:


Palestinian refugee families should be compensated, rather than returning to former homes in what is now Israel
adjustments to the pre-1967 boundaries "to reflect current realities" - a reference to Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank
He issued a stern warning to both sides not to do anything which breaks promises they have already made, or which might make negotiations more difficult.

"On the Israeli side, that includes ending settlement expansion and removing unauthorised outposts.

"On the Palestinian side, that includes confronting terrorists and dismantling terrorist infrastructure," he said.

Most recent attacks on Israel have come from inside Gaza, which is run by the Islamic militant group Hamas, and not Mr Abbas.

However, Mr Bush made no direct reference to Gaza in his statement.

And he underlined the US commitment to Israeli security.

Mr Bush goes on to Gulf states on Friday, some of which have been less hostile to Israel than other Arab states. He urged Arab states to reach out to Israel - a step he said was "long overdue".

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7181658.stm

Seems pretty logical for Bush. Didn't really see this coming. How will this go down with Arabs and Jews I'm wondering. Has potential but possible it might just piss everyone off.

fly_agaric

Sounds quite good but it's just flim-flam. Talk is always very cheap and Bush is somewhat of a lame duck at this point.

But really, Bush as the great peacemaker in the middle east! The man of peace, laying out what needs to happen on both sides... What a bad joke!
I bet that if he is still in office he'll be the first "World Leader" to cry "you go girls" if the Israelis decide to clean Iran's clock.

I wonder if that was also under discussion during his visit....

Somehow I'd say that stuff would not make it into the press releases/statements!

Mr.Micro

Bush and his road map, remember that soundbite? His words now are pure rhetoric, empty and meaningless.

SpAcEd OuT

Trying to save his legacy.

Mr.Micro

Mr. Bush on about Iran again, "the worlds leading sponsor of terror", BBC news 13th Jan 2008. Only 12 months to go and what can he do, its like an itch he cannot get rid of. The lame duck cannot start anything now as the US Presidential election is round the corner. Poor George has had his cake in Iraq but wants seconds in Iran.

The Saint

Talk is cheap and Bush has no political capital. If an incoming president was willing to lean on the Israelis (as unlikely as that is) then you might see something happen. The Israelis can nod and smile and do nothing knowing Bush has no real influence over them since he is leaving office in a year.

Manic Moran

Bottle_of_Smoke wrote: »

Didn't really see this coming.

This actually isn't a new concept for him, though it's not surprising that this shouldn't be well known as people have been focusing on his perspective on other parts of the world. He's been trying to get the two sides to talk for a fair few years now.

NTM

Kev_ps3

Mr.Micro wrote: »

Bush and his road map, remember that soundbite? His words now are pure rhetoric, empty and meaningless.

Totally. He is pathetic.

Dazrd

Does the man not realise the more he bangs on about the threat from Iran the less the world believes him to quote the man himself

"fool me once . . . . . . shame . . . . shame on you , fool me . . . . . you cant get fooled again"

! dwarfchucka

Bush is as interested in the Palestinian issue as he is in coming round my house to clean my toilet. His agenda is Iran. He has already made noises that Iran is a state sponsor of terror which is basically a re-run of the lead up to the invasion of Iraq.He has requested around $80 million to convert his bomber fleet and my guess is that he'll bomb Tehrahn in August when congress are on holiday. He's demanding a regime change so that the US gets easy access to Irans oil which is currently the situation held by China and Russia as they have good relations with Iran. (China actually controls and maintains several of Irans oilfields - using a percentage of the oil itself as payment for its services and Iran keeps the rest).
Any US involvement will quickly lead to a frightening escalation of events. Bush has even jokingly referred to WW3 in a recent statement. Far from funny.
As a minimum, you can expect oil prices to hit $150 - $200 a barrel before xmas. Petrol, Gas and electricity prices will be be double their current levels. There'll be a knock on effect on food prices and travel as a result. (cheap flights will become a rarity)The dollar will continue its demise and the US multinationals will start to pull out of Ireland. This will lead to widescale unemployment and a very bleak outlook for 2009. Happy new year.

Mr.Micro

When Bush retires at the end of the year, perhaps he can tool up and go after them Iranians, Rambo style. He is just trying to raise the anti for whatever reason, perhaps its to galvanize Republican support for the Presidential election or he is afraid Iraq will come under the influence of Iran once Bush is put out to pasture.

fly_agaric

Manic Moran wrote: »

This actually isn't a new concept for him

True. Talk of working for peace in the Israeli provinces was always a good one for mollifying Tony Blair. Maybe "not a new tactic" is better here??

Kev_ps3

Mr.Micro wrote: »

When Bush retires at the end of the year, perhaps he can tool up and go after them Iranians, Rambo style. He is just trying to raise the anti for whatever reason, perhaps its to galvanize Republican support for the Presidential election or he is afraid Iraq will come under the influence of Iran once Bush is put out to pasture.

Bush is being controlled by interest groups in the US. I think we all know who they are. Do you think some small-time Texan cares about Iran? Isreal gets what it wants.

! dwarfchucka

Kev_ps3 wrote: »

Bush is being controlled by interest groups in the US. I think we all know who they are. Do you think some small-time Texan cares about Iran? Isreal gets what it wants.

The only reason for US involvement in Israel is that its very close to the oil fields. Its true that Bush is a muppet who is controlled by Cheney and the rest but they're a dangerous bunch who wouldn't think twice about a nuclear war in the middle east as its so far from the states.The US really wants control of Irans fields cos they're the worlds 3rd largest and the US oil industry is in serious decline. Be prepared for a missile strike on Israel very soon which will be organised by the US but blamed on Iran.

Kev_ps3

! dwarfchucka wrote: »

The only reason for US involvement in Israel is that its very close to the oil fields. Its true that Bush is a muppet who is controlled by Cheney and the rest but they're a dangerous bunch who wouldn't think twice about a nuclear war in the middle east as its so far from the states.The US really wants control of Irans fields cos they're the worlds 3rd largest and the US oil industry is in serious decline. Be prepared for a missile strike on Israel very soon which will be organised by the US but blamed on Iran.

What gets me about Isreal & America is they are constantly trying to pull the woll over our eyes. Id love it if they just came out and said they want to invade Iran because they want to get rid of an Islamic country with large amounts of oil. They would get alot more respect from me. Rather then all this cloak and dagger BS.

kaiser sauze

SpAcEd OuT wrote: »

Trying to save his legacy.

Legacy?? What? Oh yeah, the No Child Left Behind act, that's it. Oh, and the groundwork for WW3 and a global recession.

Kev_ps3 wrote: »

What gets me about Isreal & America is they are constantly trying to pull the woll over our eyes. Id love it if they just came out and said they want to invade Iran because they want to get rid of an Islamic country with large amounts of oil. They would get alot more respect from me. Rather then all this cloak and dagger BS.

I believe that Israel may go ahead and take pre-emptive action at some stage, with or without Bush's support.

bobbyjoe

Bush has zero capital as his tour of the middle east showed.

First Israel and the West Bank. He tells them to sort their **** out within 12 months because his term is finishing. Says the Israelis should leave the occupied territories but offers nothing to help and ignores the fact that the Palestinian leadership has split in two.

Next Kuwait and Bahrain, He tells them everything is going well in Iraq. But he isn't visiting because its to dangerous for him five years after a war which was supposed to take a few months.

United Arab Emirates he tries to get support against Iran warning of a nuclear threat despite his own National Intelligence Estimate saying Iran has no active weapons programme.

Last stop Saudi Arabia where he sells $20bn of weapons to an oppressive regime with gross human rights violations and which does not even recognise Israel. He asks them to produce more oil they tell him to piss off.

Great tour there.
Highlights how his middle east policy has been a disaster from the start.
Worst part he will continue to bang on about spreading freedom blah blah blah...........