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The Washington Times Online Edition

Clinton seeks ‘comprehensive peace’ in Mideast

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, center right, and his British counterpart David Miliband, left, talk to press before their joint meeting, during the Gaza conference at the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt, Monday, March 2, 2009. The Egyptian president opened Monday an international donors' conference on reconstructing the war torn Gaza Strip, meant to raise at least US$ 2.8 billion (euro 2.2 billion) for the battered coastal area from 80 donor countries and international organizations. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, center right, and his British counterpart David Miliband, left, talk to press before their joint meeting, during the Gaza conference at the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt, Monday, March 2, 2009. The Egyptian president opened Monday an international donors’ conference on reconstructing the war torn Gaza Strip, meant to raise at least US$ 2.8 billion (euro 2.2 billion) for the battered coastal area from 80 donor countries and international organizations. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

UPDATED:

SHARM EL SHEIK, Egypt — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton plunged into Middle East politics Monday, committing the Obama administration to seeking a “comprehensive peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors.”

Mrs. Clinton joined officials from about 70 countries and international organizations at a donors’ conference for Gaza in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheik, where she pledged more than $900 million in U.S. aid.

“I’m proud to be here on behalf of the Obama administration and to bring this message from our new president: The United States is committed to a comprehensive peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors, and we will pursue it on many fronts,” she told the delegates.

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“So, too, will we vigorously pursue a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” she said.

“We cannot afford more setbacks or delays, or regrets about what might have been, had different decisions been made,” she said, apparently referring to the failure of previous peace efforts.

The Bush administration tended not to use the word “comprehensive,” a code word for peace between Israel and all its remaining Arab adversaries: the Palestinians, Syria and Lebanon. Instead it stressed the Palestinian track and specific issues short of Palestinian statehood, such as security, Palestinian freedom of movement and Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

Mrs. Clinton has been meeting with Arab and European officials, including French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. At lunch, she was said to have chatted with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem, though apparently nothing of substance was discussed.

During a meeting with United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahayan, Mrs. Clinton expressed doubt that Iran will respond to a U.S. offer of engagement under the current government in Tehran, said a State Department official traveling with her. Iran holds presidential elections in June, and U.S. officials are wary of being seen as interfering in Iranian domestic politics.

U.S. special envoy George Mitchell is accompanying the secretary, who officials said sees her first trip to the region as an opportunity to listen and understand the views of the various players. She promised to consult with them on all major decisions.

At the conference, she pledged about $900 million in U.S. aid, about a third of which will be used for the humanitarian needs in Gaza. The rest will go to the U.S.-backed Palestinian Authority to help with its budget shortfall and various projects.

The militant group Hamas was not invited to the conference, and a spokesman said Monday that its exclusion will undermine international efforts to rebuild Gaza.

Mrs. Clinton is resisting intensive lobbying from European officials to recognize a Palestinian unity government that includes the militant group Hamas, U.S. and European diplomats said.

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About the Author
Nicholas  Kralev

Nicholas Kralev

Nicholas Kralev is The Washington Times’ diplomatic correspondent. His travels around the world with four secretaries of state — Hillary Rodham Clinton, Condoleezza Rice, Colin Powell and Madeleine Albright — as well as his other reporting overseas trips inspired his new weekly column, “On the Fly.” He is a former writer for the weekend edition of the Financial Times and ...

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