08/06/2001: Daily Press Briefing Excerpts

EXCERPTS FROM PRESS BRIEFING RELATING TO ISRAEL/PALESTINIANS
Richard Boucher, Spokesman
Washington, DC

Complete Transcript of August 6, 2001 Briefing

Transcript Excerpts 

QUESTION: Richard, can you say what the US is doing now on the Middle East? Is the US reevaluating its policy? Are you sending people out there? Has the Secretary had phone calls?

MR. BOUCHER: The Secretary had a number of discussions last week with Europeans, Arabs, others who are as interested as we are in implementation of the Mitchell Committee recommendations. He talked to Foreign Minister Ivanov on Friday. He talked to Mr. Solana a couple times last week about Macedonia and about the Middle East, and various other European foreign ministers.

We are consistently urging the parties to take the steps that can lead to the implementation of the Mitchell Committee recommendations in all their aspects. We have been active on the ground. Senior officials in the region, as well as senior officials here, have been continuing the contact with the parties. We are trying to reduce the violence. We are trying to get the parties to make an effort, to make the maximum effort, so that we can help them in moving the Mitchell process forward as soon as possible.

QUESTION: But is there anything else besides the steps you have taken that you are considering?

MR. BOUCHER: We are always considering what more we can do. We are always considering how to move this process forward. But we are always aware of the fact that it takes the parties. It takes the parties to make the decisions, it takes the parties to cooperate, to establish security that works for both of them, and that is the only way we are going to move the overall process forward, and that's the point we keep making and the points we keep trying to encourage.

QUESTION: Are you concerned that Arab states in the region do not see the US as an honest broker anymore in this?

MR. BOUCHER: I think we are happy to let our actions speak for themselves, that we have worked what we think is with consistent direction. We have heard from other Arab states in the region that they support the Mitchell Committee recommendations, that they agree with us that that is the way to go, that they agree with us that that is the best way forward for both the parties. So I think we have a fair amount of consistency of views on that.

The issue of how to get the Mitchell process started is the one that is the problem right now, and we continue to work in that direction. I think it is recognized that we are doing that.

QUESTION: Getting the Mitchell process started -- at this point, does the State Department believe that it is time to pressure the Israelis to desist more from actions that could provoke, continue the cycle of violence in a way that, say, would be more forceful than what you have already said?

MR. BOUCHER: I think we have been quite clear that the violence, especially in the last few days, is deeply troubling, that we have looked to both sides to not go down the path of escalation or retaliation, that we have looked to both sides to make maximum efforts. And I think we have made that quite clear, that there are things that both sides should be doing to get us into this process of implementation of Mitchell, to get the kind of quiet that people are looking for.

QUESTION: What is our assessment of what is happening? I mean, these are the things we would like them to do, but are we any further than we were before the Secretary's last trip, when we thought there was maybe a cease-fire?

MR. BOUCHER: The continuation of the violence is troubling, and the fact is, we are trying to get the violence to stop. We are trying to get the parties to take more steps. That doesn't change the direction, it doesn't change the necessity of doing it, it doesn't change the mechanisms that we have available for them to do it. But we have been very consistent and very active in trying to get this process started, and we will continue to be.

QUESTION: But do we see them doing it?

MR. BOUCHER: We have seen them -- I think you have seen this sort of on-again-off-again cooperation. You have seen on-again-off-again steps. You have seen actions and retaliations take place that threaten to re-escalate the situation. Certainly we will continue to make every possible effort to decrease the violence and get on with Mitchell.

QUESTION: You have said from this podium numerous times, other officials from this building have said that you are against the practice of targeted killings by the Israelis. Late last week -- we didn't have a briefing on Friday, but I think it was Thursday -- the Vice President said that some of these targeted killings are justified.

So just -- is there a split between the White House and the State Department on whether this is an appropriate action, and what is the US policy on targeted killings?

MR. BOUCHER: No. Our policy remains the same. We are against targeted killings. There is no split between the White House and the State Department. I agree 100 percent with Ari Fleischer's briefing on Friday on this subject, and I will refer you to that.

QUESTION: Richard, Prime Minister Sharon has been here a couple of times. Would it be useful -- I know it's not the State Department that would extend an invitation -- but do you see it useful if Chairman Arafat also came to the United States for discussions?

MR. BOUCHER: We appreciate the suggestions. At this point, I don't think there is anything scheduled. You would have to check with the White House if something were to be scheduled.

QUESTION: Same topic. What is your understanding now of how Israel and Sharon stand on the possibility of US monitors?

MR. BOUCHER: I would leave it to them to describe where they stand. We haven't tried to speak on their behalf. Our position is the same, that third party monitoring could be useful as part of the implementation of Mitchell, but we are not at that stage yet. And it would have to be accepted by the parties.

QUESTION: We are not actively talking about sending them in anytime soon, since we don't have agreement with the parties?

MR. BOUCHER: What we have talked about is third party monitoring accepted by the parties in the implementation of the Mitchell recommendations. We are neither here nor there with that at this point.

QUESTION: Given this recent line on third party monitoring, that it could be useful but it would be a discussion for the, I guess, confidence-building negotiations, do you think that that may create a situation where there's a poison pill? Because the Israelis have been traditionally resistant to third party monitoring, and the Mitchell report itself says it is something that only could be discussed if both sides agreed.

By sort of changing the rhetoric with regard to that, do you think it might make it harder to get into actually those negotiations, which would cover a wider area of issues?

MR. BOUCHER: Interesting theory, Eli. If it had any foundation in fact, it would be even more interesting. The Mitchell Committee Report, as you emphasize, says that third party monitoring could be useful as part of its implementation. That is the position that we have stated all along, that is the position that was stated when Secretary Powell stood up next to Prime Minister Sharon and they discussed the subject several months ago. That is the position we took with the G-8. That is a position I have taken consistently at this podium from the beginning of the Administration, that the Secretary has taken consistently from the beginning of the Administration.

So, third party monitoring accepted by the parties, and then when Mitchell came along we said as part of Mitchell implementation. It just rolls off the tongue together, because that is the way we have always said it.

QUESTION: Anything about the Chinese missile technology transfers?

MR. BOUCHER: These guys want to change the subject first. So we will go back.

QUESTION: Are you still calling it a cease-fire?

MR. BOUCHER: Calling what a cease-fire?

QUESTION: In the Israeli-Palestinian --

MR. BOUCHER: I don't think we ever actually tried to characterize it that much. We are certainly looking for -- we are looking for the cessation of violence, which is what Mitchell asked for, and we have been trying to work for that. We have been looking for calm, we have been looking for quiet. And that is what we are still trying to work towards.

QUESTION: Do you think what is going on right now constitutes a cease-fire?

MR. BOUCHER: Well, the parties have called it a cease-fire, but there has been shooting. So you can either look at it by what they say or what they do. But in the end, what really matters is whether people are getting shot, whether people are getting hurt, whether people are getting killed. And we are quite aware of the fact that people are getting shot, hurt and killed, and we want it to stop and we keep working to try to stop it.

QUESTION: Just for the record on the Middle East, am I correct that you have never gotten to day one of the seven-day quiet period?

MR. BOUCHER: We have never tried to count, tried to express any particular number of days. We have had periods when it was quieter; we have had periods when it was not quiet. And for the moment, we are not in a position to say how many days.

Complete Transcript of August 6, 2001 Briefing