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Perie Rips New Plan for Peace

(Washington Times) Paul Martin - Pentagon adviser Richard Perle Tuesday denounced an unofficial peace plan negotiated between Israeli opposition leaders and moderate Palestinians, saying it would damage Israel's security, undermine its government, and "would be illegal in the United States." He added: "In a democracy we elect people to represent us and [opposition groups negotiating with external opponents of the state] seems to me fundamentally undemocratic." Speaking in Jerusalem, Perle said Israel's strike last week at a Palestinian camp inside Syria in response to a suicide bombing in Haifa that killed 20 persons was an appropriate application of a doctrine originated by President Bush that calls for striking not only at terrorists but at any country that harbors or protects them. "I am happy to see the message was delivered to Syria by the Israeli air force, and I hope it is the first of many such messages," Perle said. Perle said, "Negotiations before the Palestinians have democracy will fail," calling for a "change in fundamental values" among the Palestinians rather than "the concoction of formulas." He said an opposition agreement with Palestinian representatives continued a fundamental problem with Israeli-Palestinian negotiations so far - "arranging the surface issues without going below the surface." Discussions should first focus on getting the Palestinians to "address the practice of teaching Palestinian children to hate Israelis," he said.
2003-10-15 00:00:00
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