YNET NEWS: As it turns out, Saudi king apparently doesn’t back peace initiative
It may well be assumed that the Olmert government, which is currently under great pressure at home, will seek a way to revive the diplomatic process so as, among other reasons, to also create a political agenda. It will seek a legitimate political initiative as long as it is premised on accurately reading regional reality.
Prior to the publication of the Winograd Report, senior Israeli officials praised the Saudi initiative despite reservations regarding its content. The Saudi initiative was backed by the Bush Administration, a fact which influenced Israeli considerations.
Yet something strange happened during the last visit to the Middle East by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice: When Rice praised the Saudi initiative, which calls for full Israeli withdrawal in exchange for "normalization" of ties between Israel and the Arab world, the Saudi king cancelled his participation at a festive dinner with President Bush at the White House and condemned the American invasion of Iraq, calling it an "illegal foreign occupation." Don’t count on Saudi plan (more) By Dore Gold
Mark Alexander
