ISRAEL MUST AGREE TO A COMPREHENSIVE PEACE FOR ALL: AMR MOUSA

By Safa Haeri, IPS Editor

PARIS 8^TH Dec. (IPS) Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Mousa said Wednesday that having bad relations with Iran was "abnormal" and Cairo was working hard to built good relations with Iran".

"It is in the interests of both Iran and the Arab world to have the best of relations and it is abnormal to have bad relations with Iran, so we work hard to built good relations with Iran and I believe (establishing) formal ties will come at the right moment, meanwhile we are speaking and listen to each other", Mr Mousa said.

Answering questions from Iran Press Service, Mr. Mousa said that Egypt considers Iran and Turkey as forming part of a greater Middle East that includes the Arab world, Iran, Turkey and Egypt.

Although relations have greatly improved in the past two years, yet the Iranian ruling conservative clerics and chief among them, ayatollah Ali Khameneh'i continue to upheld grand ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's condition that ties would be resumed only after Egypt withdrew from the Camp David Agreements it signed with Tel-Aviv twenty years ago.

In fact, it was the founder of the Islamic Republic who cut relations with Cairo because of Egypt's recognition of Israel.

For its part, Egypt suspects the Islamic Republic helping Arab and Islamic terrorist organisations in the one hand and is angry with the Iranians to have named a street after Khaled Eslambouli, the terrorist who assassinated the late Anwar Sadat.

Before coming to Paris from Athens to attend a meeting of France and Africa, Mr. Mousa had stated that what unites Arabs and Iranians are "far more than what separates them", adding that in his view, it is not possible to eliminate Iran or turkey from Middle East considerations''.

Speaking at the prestigious Institut Francais des Relations Internationales (IFRI, or the French Institute for International Relations) on "Egypt at the Heart of Middle East", the Head of the Egyptian diplomacy said his country was working for the establishment of a "comprehensive peace" in the Middle East, a peace based on peace for land, a peace that includes and guarantee peace, security, prosperity and reconciliation for all and between all the region's nations and peoples.

"What we are dealing with in regard with the establishment of a Palestinian State is not a symbolic state or a crippled one, the cardinal issue is viable and real state. This is a sine quoi none for the conclusive reconciliation and stability in the Middle East", the Foreign Minister stated.

"The same as Egypt is in the heart of the Middle East, the region is also on the heart of Egypt. That is why we work for a comprehensive and just peace which can not be achieved without full Israeli withdrawal from all occupied Arab lands, including South of Lebanon and the Golan Heights, the right of the Palestinians to return, solving all pending issues such as the future of Jerusalem, borders, water etc. This is the only way to open the gates to normalcy, to full integration, to free exchange of goods and people".

He said the Arab Israeli dispute was not over a sea port or passage or any other interim measures, it is a question of land, of territory and of rights.

He said hopes to reach a comprehensive peace are not lost but Israel must understand that it can not ask to have everything, peace plus land plus power plus superiority etc. "However one had to give Ehud Barak his chances to establish peace with Arab neighbours, particularly the Palestinians", he pointed out.

However, he criticised the continuation of creation of new Jewish settlements in occupied Palestinian lands, saying though it was true that Mr. Barak has send buldozers to destroy some settlements established illegally, yet at the same time he has authorised much more to be established. The Israeli settlement policy must cease if peace has to prevail", he warned.

Concerning the stalemated peace talks between Syria and Israel, Mr. Mousa said though he too does not know exactly what the late Yitsahak Rabin, the assasinated Israeli Premier had promised to the Syrians, yet he is certain that once Tel-Aviv would get out of South Lebanon, negotiations with Damascus would follow, adding that in his view, Mr. Barak would withdraw from South Lebanon as he has promised to do, even unilaterally.

Israel Radio quoted cabinet Minister Benjamin Ben Eliyezer confirming that Mr. Barak would take all the Israeli forces out of it's security zone in South Lebanon before next July thus depriving the Syrians from what they consider is a bargain card in peace talks against Israel.

"Since it was the Americans who passed on the Syrians Mr. Rabin's plan for the evacuation from the Golan, therefore, only American, Israelis and the Syrians knows exactly what they are talking about and now it is again to the Americans to act", Mr. Mousa observed, adding that Cairo would also help the process.

As he was addressing the audience of senior French and foreign diplomats, experts, observers and journalists, including the Israeli ambassador to France, Israeli press quoted US State Secretary Mrs. Medeleine Albright saying she had been spirited from her talks in Damascus with the Syrian President Hafez Asad.

IFRI is the same think tank organisation where the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic Kamal Kharrazi was to give a conference last year on the Iranian foreign policy but not only he refused to appear on vague and inexisting security risks, but refused arrogantly to apologize, setting a good example of Islamic politeness and fair play. MOUSA 81299