Secretary Rice’s Meeting with U.S. Private Sector Leaders to Discuss the U.S.-Palestinian Partnership and the Palestine Investment Conference

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with a group of U.S. private sector leaders on Tuesday, April 29, to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and the strategic importance of U.S. private sector investment in the West Bank. She was joined by leaders of the U.S.-Palestinian Partnership including Chairman Walter Isaacson, Co-chairs Jean Case and Ziad Asali, and USAID Administrator Henrietta Fore.

The Partnership is working to support the Palestinian Authority’s upcoming Palestine Investment Conference, which will be hosted by Prime Minister Fayyad on May 21-23, in Bethlehem. The purpose of the conference is to showcase investment opportunities in the Palestinian territories and thereby improve the economic and social living standards through increased investment in the Palestinian economy. Secretary Rice designated Walter Isaacson to co-lead the U.S. delegation to the conference with a U.S. government representative who will be named in the upcoming days.

The peace negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians were founded on three pillars: addressing the final status issues, improving the situation on the ground, and implementing the Roadmap plan for the establishment of a Palestinian state. It was always the belief that political negotiations needed to be supported by improvements on the ground for the Palestinian people.

The U.S.-Palestinian Partnership was designed to help improve the situation on the ground by creating economic and educational opportunities for the Palestinian people. The Partnership is developing quick-impact projects to promote job creation in the West Bank; projects include the creation of an Arabic-language call center in East Jerusalem and the establishment of a mechanism to attract foreign investment in the Palestinian private sector. The Partnership is also working to launch five youth development and resource centers in the West Bank designed to prepare youth for full and productive participation in the Palestinian society and economy.

PRESS CONTACTS:

Stephanie Obenschain
Office of the Under Secretary of State
for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs
U.S. Department of State
(202) 647-9130

Office of Press Relations
U.S. Department of State
(202) 647-2492

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Released on April 29, 2008

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