Joint Press Conference by Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Secretary of
State Madeleine Albright following their Meeting
Jerusalem, December 8, 1999 - 11:00 A.M.
PRIME MINISTER BARAK: Good morning, all of you. I am glad to be able
to host Secretary Albright for the first time in our place here. In
fact, I am glad to host most of you for the first time here in our
place. I am just reciprocating. Reciprocity was an important word
previously in this region. I will reciprocate for the very cordial
hospitality that we enjoyed when we visited Washington when the
Secretary took us to her Georgetown home and we are glad to have you
here.
We had literally a fruitful and tasty breakfast and a very, I
believe, effective one. We covered, we discussed, exchanged views
about the situation of the peace process on all its tracks and I
believe that the Secretary also feels that somehow progress is made
in every such meeting and, I hope, that we will find ourselves closer
to a peace agreement as a result of the Secretary's visit to the
region. We, the Government of Israel, myself, Foreign Minister David
Levy and our colleagues are determined to live up to our commitment
to the Israeli people and to the Israeli electorate and to live up to
the mandate we get from the people of Israel to strengthen Israel
through a determined attempt to put an end to the conflict between us
and our neighbors and we are keeping stable on this target and this
objective. Thank you very much.
SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: Thank you and good morning and happy Chanukah. I
am delighted to be able to have had breakfast with you and your wife
and friends in your house. It is very generous and warm of you and it
is a custom I must say that I like of our reciprocal breakfasts.
I am delighted to return to Israel and to have a chance to have had
this meeting with Prime Minister Barak. His vision and commitment
have given the region a second chance at a comprehensive peace. I
come here at a time of great opportunity and challenge. Prime
Minister Barak and Chairman Arafat are committed to reaching a
framework agreement on permanent status by February 13th, which is 68
days from now, and they want an agreement on permanent status in its
entirety within the next nine months. Now these are bold objectives
but they are achievable and both leaders are serious and recognize
that the difficult issues are not going to get easier with the
passage of time. They know that the sooner the tough decisions are
made, the sooner Israelis and Palestinians can reap the benefits of
peace. Success will depend on creating trust and that means ensuring
the best possible environment for negotiation. Each side needs to
avoid taking steps or imposing conditions that embarrass the other
and make negotiations more difficult.
The United States stands ready to assist the Israelis and
Palestinians as they work toward the goals they have set. President
Clinton and I are prepared to support Prime Minister Barak and
Chairman Arafat in any way that we can. We are equally committed to
the search for a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace and to help Israel,
Syria and Lebanon resume their negotiation. With respect to Syria,
our objective is clear: to develop a basis to resume the direct
negotiations that were suspended more than three years ago, and to
make it possible to move quickly to a conclusion. As I said
yesterday, I left Damascus more optimistic than when I arrived and,
following my meeting today with the Prime Minister, I think it's fair
to say that we made good progress toward meeting our objective.
The Middle East peace process has the potential to transform the
region, but we know from long experience that one of the foundations
of peace making is a close and strong relationship between Israel and
the United States. Our commitment to Israel's security will always be
unwavering, our two countries share a special relationship, and you
can count on us to do our part to maintain it. Thank you.
QUESTION (in Hebrew): Mr. Prime Minister, did Secretary Albright give
you any clarifications on the position of President Assad regarding
the peace process, in particular, any positions that may make it
easier for you to reach an agreement with them?
(In English) And for you, Mrs. Secretary, there was a claim from the
Syrians about a letter from Clinton to President Assad that, in this
letter, the Syrians claim that it is written that Rabin, Prime
Minister Rabin, accepted the withdrawal until the fourth of June
1967. Are you willing to respond to this claim?
PRIME MINISTER BARAK (in Hebrew): The Foreign Minister and I met with
the Secretary this morning for a very fruitful and good breakfast. We
examined the progress in all of the tracks, including the Syrian
track, and I assure you that once there is progress in the Syrian
track I will announce that.
SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: And let me just say in response, I don't think it
is appropriate to discuss mail between two presidents. And I think
that the important point here is, as I said yesterday, that details
of negotiations, like mushrooms, develop better away from the
light.
PRIME MINISTER BARAK (in Hebrew): There's also a Hebrew Talmudic
saying which says that the blessing only exists for that that is not
obvious to the eye.
QUESTION: Bases of security, guarantees and all, is this sufficient
in your mind, to compensate Israel's security as it gives up real
land, real territory that serves as a barrier to attack the North
ever since 1967. A bunch of wires and a bunch of civilian observers,
is that going to make Israel more secure and give up the Golan
Heights?
PRIME MINISTER BARAK: Believe me, I spent all my life in uniform
defending this country. I happened even to participate in the taking
over of the Golan Heights originally in '67 and I will not sign any
agreement that will not, to the best of my judgement, strengthen
Israel rather than weaken it. I am realistic enough to know that
painful compromises will be needed in order to achieve peace in every
single track but, I am confident, that living in the Middle East,
Israel being what it is, the best way for Israel to strengthen itself
is to find a way to make peace with our neighbors without violating
any of our vital security interests. I don't think that any details
at this stage will help achieving such a peace and I am committed,
first of all, to the result more than to the explanation. If we are
able to make a peace, every hesitation along the way will be totally
irrelevant. If we fail, any perfect argument will be irrelevant as
well.
QUESTION (in Hebrew): Mr. Prime Minister, as usual you are not
prepared to describe the status of the negotiation. Are you willing,
however, to explain the scenario that we may expect during the
upcoming days following the visit of Secretary of State Albright?
Particularly with regard to Syria?
Madam Secretary, what is your reaction to the Prime Minister's
decision to halt the building in the settlements? Do you think it is
a good step and will it help to resume the negotiations with the
Palestinians about the permanent status?
PRIME MINISTER BARAK (in Hebrew): How can I know before the afternoon
what will occur after the afternoon. Usually, to gain this
information I listen to your radio station and learn what is going
on. I do seriously believe, however, that every day brings us
closer to a solution and farther from a crisis, I hope. We are
working on it.
SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: The Prime Minister explained his decision to me
about the suspension of certain activities and I think this is very
important in terms of the Palestinian track. These are issues that
are part of the permanent status discussions and it is very important
for all of those to be addressed as rapidly as possible given the
schedule that have been set up and I think that it is very important,
as I have said a number of times, for both sides to understand the
sensitivities of these particular issues.
QUESTION: Mr. Prime Minister and Madam Secretary, the same question
to both of you. We have been up and down this Syrian hill a dozen
times or more in recent years. I would just like to know how real do
you personally believe it is this time? I mean, we hear words like
optimistic but we have heard optimistic before. We have heard hopeful
before. How real is it this time?
PRIME MINISTER BARAK: I cannot predict it. As of now, it's too early.
It takes two to tango. There is clearly a unique opportunity based on
the experiences in the last decade from Madrid, through the
negotiations that Assad had with Rabin, then with Peres, then
indirectly with Netanyahu, I think that basically we know all that we
can know about his positions, and he knows all that he can know about
our positions, short of making the decision. Now I think that there
are also other reasons, you know, the very passing of time, doesn't
make our latitude, opportunities or room for maneuver wider or
longer.
It's the turn of the millennium, and there is a government in Israel
which is self-confident enough and feels that Israel is strong and
can afford strengthening itself even more by making peace rather than
living on our sword. It was, I believe, Otto Von Bismarck who once
said that you can do many things with bayonets but you cannot sit on
them. And I believe that that applies also to Israel.
We have here an eruption of energies, of talent, immigrants are
coming, highly educated, youngsters, who are so devoted to the
country and now creating start-ups at the rate of two to three per
day. We have so many other things to do other than to be deployed
for another generation or two along the borders and bury our
youngsters, and let the other bury theirs. So it's time to make
decisions. I feel, somehow, that the opportunity is clear also to
President Assad. But I cannot prove it, and I don't know whether
anyone can predict it before it materializes.
SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: I think that what the Prime Minister said really
speaks for itself and, from my perspective, what is important is that
there seems to be more of a understanding of the historic
opportunities that exist and that we have, in fact, I think, as I
said, a greater sense of optimism, because from my meetings, both
here and in Damascus, I have a sense that there is a desire to seize
the moment.
QUESTION (in Hebrew): Mr. Prime Minister, don't you think that it may
appear to be improper that you have decided to freeze the
construction in the settlements at the time that it was requested by
the Palestinians, and it might appear that you are surrendering to
pressure?
(In English) Madam Secretary, what are going to be the next steps in
the Syrian-Israeli negotiations? Is there going to be any personal
involvement of President Clinton?
PRIME MINISTER BARAK (in Hebrew): First of all, I do not deal with
appearances, rather I deal with the real issues, the essential ones.
The government position has always been, since its establishment, to
permit only the natural growth of the settlements. Recently, 1,800
units have been constructed or are under construction in the primary
settlements. Since it takes approximately two years between the time
tenders are submitted to construct new housing units and the
negotiations now will continue for approximately 70 days, and since
the submission of bids and tenders now is harmful and will not
strengthen our position in the negotiation process, there is no
reason not to suspend the submission of new tenders for housing
construction from December to March. Current construction, of course,
shall continue and, I want to stress that this combination is logical
and will in fact strengthen our position, both in the Land of Israel
and in the negotiation process. Those who believe that we should
continue to request a submission of bids at the moment are misguided
on both of these points.
SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: In terms of next steps, I don't think it is yet
appropriate to discuss them but, what is significant and important, I
think, as I have said earlier, is that our objective has been to
develop a basis to resume the direct negotiations and to make it
possible to move forward to a quick conclusion and I think it is fair
to say that we have made progress on that road. In terms of the
President's involvement, let me say I spoke with the President
yesterday and he was pleased to hear my report. He has taken thus far
a very personal hand in whatever has been achieved this far. I think
that his role during Wye was absolutely key. He was also, I think,
extremely important in reaching the agreements, what we did in
Sharm-el-Sheik, and he is someone who believes that his hands-on
activity as all tracks proceed is very important. I think it is fair
to say, at least Prime Minister Barak has made this clear to me, is
that the parties, all the parties have the utmost confidence in
President Clinton's fairness, his understanding in detail of all the
issues and his commitment to peace.
QUESTION: Two questions. One, specifically, when can the
Syrian-Israeli negotiations resume, within days or within weeks or
within months? When do you expect them to resume? And two, Mr. Prime
Minister, you have indicated some flexibility personally in your
vision of a Middle East peace and when that can be achieved. The
timetables could slip a little bit, a few months. Do you think that
it is possible that the timetable for the framework agreement due in
68 days, as the Secretary indicated, could slip a little bit from
February 13th?
PRIME MINISTER BARAK: First of all, about the deadlines, I have
always said that if certain deadlines will be achieved before time, I
will not ask for a citation, and if it takes another month or six
weeks, I will not jump from a tower. It is a kind of framework that
gives a sense of direction, urgency and need to act not just to talk.
I am a man of action, I spent all my life, not in politics, but in
places where something that you want to do, you have to do something
about it in order to do it, to accomplish it. So, I take the peace
process with the same kind of approach and, I believe, that the
framework is very helpful.
Let me tell you that President Ciampi of Italy was here and, I was
criticized by some of your colleagues here for making these
deadlines, and he was surprised. He told the journalists here that in
the EU he believes that they would never achieve what had been
achieved unless they would set quite tight deadlines for any further
step.
Now, about when the negotiations--
QUESTION: You don't think the deadlines will slip?
PRIME MINISTER BARAK: I don't see a reason why they will slip but I
will not jump from the roof here if it slips for a few weeks. It
doesn't matter. But, at the same time, in regard to the resumption of
negotiations with the Syrians, since the election I say that I
believe that it shouldn't take more than a few weeks. So, I am
consistent. I still think the same, for what it's worth.
SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: Well, I think we need to take this a step at a
time. I have basically said that I have felt that there has been good
progress on what I set out to do on this trip but, we have a long way
to go and, I think, that the point here is that I have had good
meetings that have left me more optimistic than I came and I just say
again, mushrooms--
QUESTION (in Hebrew): Mr. Prime Minister, following your discussion
with Madam Albright, I wanted to know whether you had a better
understanding of whether the Palestinians will accept the five
percent for the second withdrawal?
(In English) And, Ms. Secretary, do you think the Palestinians are
going to be a part, as they say, in saying or deciding which parts of
land they will have in the second FRD?
PRIME MINISTER BARAK (in Hebrew): I believe that this question is not
connected to the visit of Madam Albright. The transfer of five
percent is connected, of course, with the Sharm agreement and derives
more closely from Wye. The transfer will occur following consultation
with the Knesset and examination of maps. This transfer will occur
after this process.
SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: I think that the Prime Minister has described the
process. We have said that it's really the parties that now have to
deal with the issues that were outlined at Wye and delineated further
at Sharm, and that is our position.
PRIME MINISTER BARAK: Thank you very much.