|
|
USIA - State Department Report, 97-08-04
From: The United States Information Agency (USIA) Home Page at <http://www.usia.gov>
STATE DEPARTMENT REPORT, MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 1997
(Middle East peace process, Bosnia, Aegean) (370)
Deputy State Department Spokesman Jim Foley briefed at an informal
briefing. There is no transcript.
MIDDLE EAST PEACE FACILITATION ACT (MEPFA) -- The fact that Congress has
recessed without extending MEPFA authority "doesn't impair our diplomatic
contacts with the Palestinians," Foley said. It could, however, cause the
Washington office of the Palestinian Authority to suspend its activities,
he said. The congressional move could also have consequences for U.S.
assistance programs to the Palestinians, although they are generally run
through private organizations and not directly through the Palestinian
Authority. Foley said the Administration is "looking closely" at the
matter.
Foley confirmed that Special Middle East Coordinator Dennis Ross is
expected to leave for the Middle East during the week of August 4. His trip
will focus on security issues, which Foley called "the one issue on the
agenda today." He said the United States is looking for "a sustained, even
relentless effort" on the part of the Palestinians to address security
concerns. While it may be impossible to stop violent actions completely,
the U.S. wants the Palestinians to make a full "100 percent effort" to
try.
Foley did concede that Israeli moves to close off the Palestinian areas in
the West Bank and Gaza does affect the Palestinian economy and that
Palestinian economic well-being remains a critical element of the overall
peace process.
BOSNIA -- Foley also noted that the Bosnian factions have been unable to
meet the August 1 deadline the international community set to resolve their
differences over the naming of ambassadors. As a result, the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has asked key nations to
suspend contact with current Bosnian ambassadors. This the United States is
now in the process of doing. "We support the decision ... We intend to
suspend contact," Foley stated.
AEGEAN -- Foley said that the United States was pleased that new Turkish
Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz suggested in a recent Newsweek interview that
he may be willing to take the dispute over an islet in the Aegean Sea known
as Kardak in Turkish and Imia in Greece to the International Court in The
Hague.
From the United States Information Agency (USIA) Home Page at http://www.usia.gov
|