Sticking Seriously

Mahmoud Abbas has his concerns that The Administration will promote the Israel-Palestine peace plan while simultaneously making deals with Isreal for political negotiation purposes. Abbas rightly feels that this would undermine the process. He also rightly expresses his fear- learned from the experience, time and time again.

Abbas said he would tout to Bush his achievements since being elected in January, including a ceasefire he wrung from militants and a start to security reforms -- both preconditions of a U.S.-devised "road map" peace plan.

But he would also urge Bush to make Israel uphold its obligations in the plan by, for instance, twinning the pullout of 8,500 settlers from Gaza by freezing construction in much larger settlements in the occupied West Bank.

"We will go and demand from the Americans to do their duty. What is their duty? It is to stick seriously to the road map," Abbas told the Arabic satellite television network al-Jazeera.

ie: To uphold their diplomatic promises for a peaceful resolution to the Mid East Crises.

[Some of which, of course, he has helped to greatly fuel. But that needs be left undiscussed.]