(White House) - President Bush told the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram on Thursday: "I think the timetable of 2005 [for a Palestinian state] isn't as realistic as it was two years ago. Nevertheless, I do think we ought to push hard as fast as possible to get a state in place." "The rights of Palestinians to return to Israel will be negotiated." "I think Prime Minister Sharon created an interesting dynamic, I really do, and that is withdrawal from the West Bank....I think you're going to see over time with the emergence of a Palestinian state that the West Bank will be occupied by Palestinians. And to the extent to what the final border looks like is up for negotiations." "The focus ought to be on how do we get a Palestinian state up and running and moving forward."
2004-05-07 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive