Joint Statement with Russian President Vladimir Putin
on the Middle East
(November 13, 2001)
We express our deep concern over the situation in
the Middle East, which has led to untold suffering by Palestinians and
Israelis during the past year. The violence and terror must end.
The United States and Russia, as cosponsors of the
Middle East peace process, call upon the leadership of Israel and the
Palestinian Authority to take urgent steps to ease tension, as well
as to refrain from actions that are harmful to the other side and to
resume the dialogue at a high political level. It is also necessary
to proceed without delay towards the implementation of the Tenet workplan
and the Mitchell Report recommendations: to end the violence, to set
up stable cooperation in the area of security, to implement confidence-building
measures, and to resume the substantive negotiating process.
Our two nations, acting in concert with other key parties,
are stepping up their efforts aimed at facilitating early resolution
of the crisis in the region and resuming negotiations on all tracks--
Palestinian, Syrian, and Lebanese--in the interests of making progress
toward a comprehensive settlement in the Middle East, based on the Madrid
principles, UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, and existing
agreements and accords.
Sources: Public Papers of the President |