SAUDI ARABIA: Arab summit ends with endorsement for land-for-peace proposal with Israel and warning about a possible nuclear arms race in region

Record ID: 189831

  • Title: SAUDI ARABIA: Arab summit ends with endorsement for land-for-peace proposal with Israel and warning about a possible nuclear arms race in region
  • Date: 30th March 2007
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PALESTINIAN PRIME MINISTER ISMAEL HANIYEH, SAYING: "The real test is translating these declarations into something practical on the ground, especially by putting an end to the economic and financial blockade."
  • Embargoed: 14th April 2007 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Saudi Arabia
  • Country: Saudi Arabia
  • Reuters ID: LVA61D1WG6N8EW1DED1MJAA5OJWX
  • Story Text: Arab leaders endorsed a peace plan on Thursday (March 29) for ending a decades-old conflict with Israel, and the Palestinian president warned of more violence if the "hand of peace" was rejected.
    The Arab summit drew world and Muslim leaders who backed the Arab plan offering Israel normal ties with all Arab countries in return for its withdrawal from land occupied in the 1967 Middle East war, the creation of a Palestinian state and a "just solution" for Palestinians displaced in 1948.
    The final communique, dubbed the "Riyadh Declaration, read by Arab League chief Amr Moussa at the close of the summit affirmed "a just and comprehensive peace as a strategic option for the Arab nation in accordance with the Arab peace initiative that is the right path to a peaceful settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict, in accordance with international low and based on land-for-peace."
    Rejected by Israel when it was originally proposed at a Beirut summit in 2002, the plan has key hurdles to overcome.
    Israel objects to important elements, including the proposed return to 1967 borders, the inclusion of Arab East Jerusalem in a Palestinian state and the return of Palestinian refugees to homes in what is now Israel. Backed by its U.S. ally, the Jewish state has said it prefers to negotiate the terms of peace first.
    Islamist group Hamas, which heads the Palestinian government, also has reservations about the plan. It has not voiced opposition but called on Arab leaders not to compromise on the right of refugees to return to homes lost in the turmoil surrounding the creation of Israel almost 60 years ago.
    "The real test is translating these declarations into something practical on the ground, especially by putting an end to the economic and financial blockade" said Palestinian Prime Minister Ismael Haniyeh.
    Arab leaders had discussed insisting on the right of return, but the final plan called for a "just solution" for refugees.
    "Today, Israel rejects (the initiative) because its government is weak. Unfortunately, when the Israeli government is strong it rejects peace and when its government is weak, it rejects peace. I say when Israel gets back on its feet and reviews the Arab peace initiative, it will find that it is the right and just solution" said Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al Moualem.
    Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal said Israel refusal to accept the plan came 'as no surprise'
    ''Israel's refusal of this (Riyadh peace overture) not only subjects the region but itself to dangers with unpredictable repercussions This question in reality is one that should be directed to Israel, and not the Arab states'' he said during a news conference at the end of the two day summit.
    ''The statements that have emanated from Israel before, during and after the Arab Summit are all about normalisation. Some international policies are seeking this normalisation. It is clear that the Arab position with regards to that is that nothing is free, and nothing should be for free'' said Arab League Chief Amr Moussa.
    The summit comes against a tense regional backdrop with fears high among Arab leaders that a U.S.-led attack on Shi'ite Muslim Iran, which has refused to comply with U.N. demands to halt atomic work, could further destabilise their region.
    The summit communique warned of the danger of a nuclear arms race in the region, though it also stressed the right of every country to possess nuclear energy for peaceful uses.
    "We also affirm the importance of emptying the region of all weapons of mass destruction and we warn of the launch of a grave and destructive nuclear arms race in the region. We affirm the right of all countries to peaceful nuclear energy according to international standards and inspection systems" Moussa said.
    Iran says its atomic programme is peaceful but Gulf Arab countries on its doorstep, most of them Sunni-led, share Western concerns that the Islamic Republic wants nuclear bombs.
    Those suspicions add to long-running concerns among Gulf Arabs about non-Arab Iran's growing influence in the region's main hotspots -- Iraq, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories.
    Gulf Arab states said last year they would begin developing their own joint nuclear energy programme for electricity and water desalination, raising fears of a regional nuclear race.
    The Arab summit communique also warned of the dangers of growing sectarianism in the region.
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