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Sharon: Depth of Withdrawal Depends on U.S. Commitments

(Ha'aretz) Aluf Benn - Sharon told the Likud faction Monday he intended to ask the U.S. to recognize the Israeli security line in the territories as "a long-term interim arrangement." He said: "We want to ensure there will be no diplomatic plan or demands on Israel from any source until a different Palestinian leadership is set up that fights terror and applies the road map. In the interim period, we shall fix the security line, and that is why the Palestinians are so worried about this." Sharon would like to see American commitments to Israel anchored in a written memorandum of understanding from the U.S. administration. He said the depth of the withdrawal would depend on what Israel received in return, and praised Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the list of proposals he had drawn up as possible compensation. Israel plans to ask the Americans to recognize the blocs of Ma'aleh Adumim, Ariel, and Gush Etzion and agree that they be excluded from the list of settlements where building is frozen. Israel will also request that Washington prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state in the territories after the Israeli withdrawal.
2004-02-24 00:00:00
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