Briefing to Cabinet on Meeting with President Bush
(April 17, 2005)
Prime Minister Sharon briefed ministers on his
recent visit to the US: “I had an important diplomatic visit in
the US last week. US President George
Bush hosted me at his farm in Texas, together with Vice President
Richard Cheney, Secretary of State Dr. Condoleeza Rice and National
Security Advisor Stephen Hadley. The meetings took place in a warm and
friendly atmosphere.
The purpose of the visit was to strengthen the special
relationship that exists between Israel and the US, to express unequivocal
US support for the Disengagement
Plan and to show solidarity with the Israeli government on the many
difficulties it faces in implementing the Plan. Furthermore, we wished
to strengthen bilateral understandings on several important strategic
issues. I believe that we were successful in all the targets we set
for ourselves.
President Bush emphasized the US’s commitment
to Israel’s security and that it should retain its Jewish character.
He also reiterated his commitment to all the issues in his April
2004 letter, including:
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Israel’s right to self-defense.
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Commitment to the Roadmap,
and all its stages, as the only diplomatic plan, and that any progress
will be made according to it.
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The need for immediate and decisive Palestinian
actions in the war on terrorism and the dismantling of terrorist
infrastructure as a condition for progress on the Roadmap.
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President Bush reiterated his commitment to
the US position that in any future permanent settlement, all the
major settlement blocs would remain part of the State of Israel.
I would like to relate to reports in the Israeli media
over the weekend, to the effect that after the Disengagement Plan, Israel
intends to implement another disengagement plan in Judea and Samaria.
I would like to deny these reports and emphasize that the matter was
not even been mentioned in my meetings in the US. I made it clear to
the President that Israel’s position is that the only diplomatic
plan that exists is the Roadmap. After the necessary conditions are
fulfilled for implementing it, with a genuine Palestinian war on terrorism
being first and foremost, along with the dismantling of terrorist infrastructure
and the implementation of comprehensive reforms, only then will we make
progress on the Roadmap. The permanent settlement will only be discussed
in the third stage. This has been and remains our position and that
of the US.
I was impressed that the US’s position in all
these matters has not changed even after the American elections. The
Americans reiterated that their position on the issue of settlements
has not changed since the settlement enterprise began. We agreed that
we would discuss this matter in the future.
President Bush called on the Palestinian Authority
to coordinate the Disengagement Plan with Israel. He added that the
US is interested in aiding the Plan in order to ensure its success.
Therefore, President Bush announced that he would appoint outgoing World
Bank Chairman James Wolfensohn as coordinator for economic matters related
to disengagement, and to assist in rebuilding the economy in Gaza after Israel’s departure.
The President expressed support for my intentions to
develop the Negev and the Galilee, both economically and socially. President
Bush agreed to assist us in implementing this plan, and regarding with
other elements of the Disengagement Plan. This week, Finance Ministry
Director-General Yossi Bechar will leave for the US in order to begin
discussions with professional officials on details of the US financial
assistance.
During my visit, I also met separately with Vice President
Cheney, Secretary of State Dr. Rice, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld,
Jewish members of Congress, Senate and House of Representatives leaders,
and Jewish community leaders.
In addition to the Palestinian issue, other regional
matters were raised including - inter alia - the Iranian
nuclear threat, the withdrawal of Syrian forces from Lebanon,
the situation in Lebanon after Syria’s withdrawal and in light
of Hezbollah threats, and
the smuggling of weapons from Egypt.
Sources: Prime Minister's Office |