GUIDANCE: MIDDLE EAST CONSULTATIONS, APRIL 20

UNCLAS STATE 037297 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: UNSC PREL IS LE KPAL SUBJECT: GUIDANCE: MIDDLE EAST CONSULTATIONS, APRIL 20 ¶1. (SBU) This is an action message. USUN is authorized to draw from the points in para 2 below as a basis for its participation in Security Council consultations on the Middle East scheduled for April 20, and for its public statements on the consultation. ¶2. (U) Talking points: -- It is the policy of the United States to move quickly and actively to seek a lasting peace between Israel and its neighbors. We envision two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security; a Palestinian Authority that can realize the Palestinian people's legitimate aspirations and be a genuine party to peace by continuing to recognize Israel, renounce violence, and accept previous agreements and obligations; and a comprehensive peace between Israel and all its neighbors that respects Israel's rightful place in the community of nations. -- With Special Envoy Mitchell leading our efforts, we are engaged in determined and vigorous diplomacy to achieve this vision. The Special Envoy began his current visit to the region on April 13 to launch discussions with the new Israeli government, with the Palestinians, and with regional governments about creating the context for successful negotiations toward the achievement of a two-state solution and a comprehensive peace. -- The Quartet should remain the pre-eminent mechanism for coordinating international support for Middle East peace. We urge all parties to respect their obligations under the Roadmap and refrain from any activities that do not help the cause of peace in the Middle East. -- The United States appreciates the ongoing efforts of President Mubarak and the Government of Egypt in hosting Palestinian reconciliation talks on the basis of achieving a Palestinian authority that abides by all PLO commitments, and in promoting a durable ceasefire in Gaza and southern Israel. The United States values Egypt's leadership in the region and its support for peace. -- The United States is deeply committed to relieving the suffering of the people of Gaza. Following the recent conflict there, we have contributed more than $72 million in food, water, medicine, and shelter. At the Sharm el Sheikh donors' conference, Secretary Clinton announced our intention, pending Congressional approval, to support Gaza's recovery and the Palestinian Authority's efforts to develop the Palestinian economy with more than $900 million in assistance. This includes up to $300 million in urgent humanitarian assistance provided through USAID, UN agencies, and other international organizations; $200 million in direct budgetary support for the PA; and up to $400 million to support priorities identified in the Palestinian Reform and Development Plan, including development projects and security assistance under the coordination of the U.S. Security Coordinator (USSC). -- Budget assistance to the Palestinian Authority will assist it in its single highest priority of avoiding fiscal insolvency, and will ensure that it remains a credible government able to foster the conditions for a future viable, peaceful Palestinian state. We urge other states also to provide such support immediately. -- We continue to engage the Government of Israel on a daily basis on the volume and range of humanitarian items and humanitarian workers entering Gaza. We encourage Israel to make it easier to bring humanitarian goods into Gaza and to ease restrictions on urgently needed items, including critical building supplies. As part of a lasting cease-fire, Gaza's border crossings should be opened to permit the robust flow of aid and commerce, with an appropriate monitoring regime joined by both the international community and the Palestinian Authority. -- Our response to the urgent needs in Gaza cannot be separated from our broader, long-term efforts to achieve a comprehensive peace. We are determined to aggressively work for a lasting peace that provides a secure and prosperous future for Israelis and Palestinians alike. -- We have made it clear to Israel that settlement activity is unhelpful, and we call on Israel to dismantle outposts erected since March 2001. We also call on the Arab states, building on the Arab peace initiative, to reach out to Israel to demonstrate in both word and deed that Israel has a permanent and secure place in the region. -- The smuggling of weapons into Gaza constitutes a serious and immediate threat to regional peace and security, putting innocent lives at risk and threatening to set off another deadly round of violence. All states, particularly those in the region, must do everything they can to prevent this smuggling activity. Building upon relevant UN Security Council resolutions, and taking into account counterterrorism and nonproliferation conventions and regimes, nine nations endorsed the Gaza Counter Arms Smuggling Initiative Program of Action in London in March to address this threat. -- In Lebanon as in Gaza, arms smuggling is a continuing threat to peace and security in the region. We remain deeply concerned about Hizballah's continuing efforts to rearm in defiance of Security Council Resolution 1559, which called for the disbanding and disarmament of all militias in Lebanon, and of the arms embargo enacted under Resolution 1701. We welcome pledges by the governments of Syria and Lebanon to begin demarcating their shared border, which will facilitate steps needed to stop smuggling. As provided in resolution 1701, there must be no weapons in Lebanon other than those authorized by the state. We continue to call upon Hizballah and all militant groups in Lebanon to disarm and note we will continue our no-contact policy until they do so, whatever their involvement in the Lebanese government. -- I wish to convey our condolences to the Lebanese Armed Forces and the families of those soldiers killed in the April 13 attack on their patrol in the Bekaa Valley and our support for the Lebanese government's efforts to bring the perpetrators of this terrible attack to justice. We continue to strongly support the Lebanese Armed Forces as the legitimate protector of Lebanon's security and remain firmly committed to continuing our support for the Lebanese governments, its democratic institutions, and its security services. -- The United States continues to press all parties in Lebanon to support the conduct of free, fair, and transparent parliamentary elections this June, unmarred by political violence. The shape and composition of Lebanon's next government must be decided by the Lebanese themselves, on behalf of an independent Lebanon, free from outside interference. -- We remain confident that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon will bring to justice those who financed, planned, and perpetrated the assassinations of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri and others, and we will continue to support its important work to help end the era of impunity for political assassinations in Lebanon. -- The United States remains resolute in its support for a free, sovereign and independent Lebanon, as called for in Resolutions 1559, 1680 and 1701. The United States will continue to support the full implementation of each of these resolutions, including the cooperation of all parties with their mechanisms and interlocutors. And we will continue to support the forces of freedom, sovereignty and democracy in Lebanon. End talking points. CLINTON