http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/saudi-gives-ultimatum-to-israel/2007/03/28/1174761566148.html
Saudi gives ultimatum to Israel THE "lords of war" will decide Israel's future if it rejects a blueprint for peace crafted by the Arab world, Saudi Arabia's veteran foreign minister warns. As leaders began gathering in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, for a summit of the Arab League, Prince Saud al-Faisal said the Middle East risked perpetual conflict if the peace plan failed. Under this Saudi-drafted plan, every Arab country would formally recognise Israel in return for a withdrawal from all the land captured in the war of 1967. This would entail a Palestinian state embracing the West Bank and Gaza with East Jerusalem as its capital. Every Arab country will almost certainly endorse this blueprint when the Riyadh summit concludes tomorrow. Prince Saud said Israel should accept or reject this final offer. "What we have the power to do in the Arab world, we think we have done," he said. "So now it is up to the other side because if you want peace, it is not enough for one side only to want it. Both sides must want it equally." Speaking inside his whitewashed palace in Riyadh, Prince Saud delivered an unequivocal warning to Israel. "If Israel refuses, that means it doesn't want peace and it places everything back into the hands of fate. They will be putting their future not in the hands of the peacemakers but in the hands of the lords of war," he said. Prince Saud dismissed any further diplomatic overtures towards Israel. "It has never been proven that reaching out to Israel achieves anything," he said. "Other Arab countries have recognised Israel and what has that achieved? "The largest Arab country, Egypt, recognised Israel and what was the result? Not one iota of change happened in the attitude of Israel towards peace." Israel has many reservations about the Arab peace plan, which was previously proposed at a summit in 2002. It fears any hint that Palestinian refugees would have the right to return to their homes in the event of a peace settlement. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice received a humiliating snub from Israel on Tuesday when it refused her offer to act as negotiator between its Government and the Palestinian authorities. Ms Rice, attempting to start final status talks on the creation of a Palestinian state during a visit to Jerusalem, postponed a news conference planned on Monday evening after tense talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
