Oct. 15, 2003
Israel angered by Swiss sponsorship of "Geneva Initiative"
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Israel's government is angered by Swiss sponsorship of an unofficial peace plan worked out between former Israeli and Palestinian politicians and veteran peace negotiators, an Israeli Foreign Ministry official said Wednesday.
The still-unreleased 50-page document, worked out primarily under the sponsorship of Switzerland, has no official standing, but outlines a solution to generations of conflict and includes a map of a future Palestinian state alongside Israel.
On Wednesday, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Jonathan Peled said the government was peeved at the Swiss, who helped fund the effort and hosted participants for talks in Geneva.
"I'm not sure that we are furious with them but we are certainly checking to see what the Swiss involvement is," Peled said. "We will explain to them that agreements and negotiations are conducted between governments and not private individuals."
Funding for what's become known as the "Geneva Initiative" has also come from Britain, Japan, Norway and Sweden. Participants hope to sign the deal in Geneva on Nov. 4, the eighth anniversary of the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin by an extremist Jew who opposed his peace moves.
An official at the Swiss Foreign Ministry defended the effort Wednesday.
"Our position is simple; this is a project which originates from the civil societies of both parties," said Paul Fivat, of the ministry's Mideast desk. "This project is in line with the principles of our peace policy and programs ... in which a part is supporting such kinds of private initiatives coming out of civil societies."
The deal, finalized over the weekend at a resort along Jordan's Dead Sea shore, envisions a Palestinian state in 98 percent of the West Bank, all of the Gaza Strip and Arab neighborhoods of Jerusalem _ lands Israel captured and occupied in the 1967 Middle East war.
The plan addresses some of the critical issues that have sunk past peace efforts, namely the question of Palestinian war refugees who fled or were forced out of homes inside what is now Israel. The plan gives some 4 million refugees and their descendants three options, but blocks any chance of them resettling in large numbers in Israel.
Refugees could settle in a future Palestinian state or third countries, or be compensated for remaining where they are. Some could go to Israel, but only if Israel agreed to take them.
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has given his support to the effort but will not officially endorse it until the Israeli government does, said former Cabinet minister Yasser Abed Rabbo.
On Wednesday, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia said there was no official Palestinian position on the plan yet.
"I am one of those who support any dialogue between the Palestinians and Israeli groups and powers," Qureia added. "We have to encourage the initiative from both sides for dialogue and ties."
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