Summit of Peacemakers - Sharm el-Sheikh- March 13- 1996 - Final Statement

Sharm el-Sheikh, March 13, 1996

Issued by Co-Chairmen, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and US President Bill Clinton:

The Summit of Peacemakers has just concluded. This meeting took place at a time when the peace process confronts serious threats. The summit had three fundamental objectives: to enhance the peace process, to promote security and to combat terror.

Accordingly, the participants here today:

• Express their full support for the Middle East peace process and their determination that this process continue in order to accomplish a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the region.

• Affirm their determination to promote security and stability and to prevent the enemies of peace from achieving their ultimate objective of destroying the real opportunity for peace in the Middle East.

• Reemphasize their strong condemnation of all acts of terror in all its abhorrent forms, whatever its motivation and whoever its perpetrator, including recent terrorist attacks in Israel, consider them alien to the moral and spiritual values shared by all the peoples of the region and reaffirm their intention to stand staunchly against all such acts and to urge all governments to join them in this condemnation and opposition.

To that end, we decided:

1. To support the Israel-Palestinian agreement, the continuation of the negotiating process, and to politically and economically reinforce it, to enhance the security situation for both, with special attention to the current and pressing economic needs of the Palestinians.

2. To support continuation of the negotiation process in order to achieve a comprehensive settlement.

3. To work together to promote security and stability in the region by developing effective and practical means of cooperation and further assistance.

4. To promote coordination of efforts to stop acts of terror on bilateral, regional and international levels; ensuring instigators of such acts are brought to justice; supporting efforts by all parties to prevent their territories from being used for terrorist purposes; and preventing terrorist organizations from engaging in recruitment, supplying arms, or fund raising.

5. To exert maximum efforts to identify and determine the sources of financing for these groups and to cooperate in cutting them off, and by providing training, equipment and other forms of support to those taking steps against groups using violence and terror to undermine peace, security or stability.

6. To form a working group, open to all summit participants, to prepare recommendations on how best to implement the decisions contained in this statement, through ongoing work, and to report to the participants within thirty days.