GUIDANCE: UNSC MIDDLE EAST DEBATE, MAY 11, 2009

UNCLAS STATE 046591 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: UNSC PREL IS LE KPAL SUBJECT: GUIDANCE: UNSC MIDDLE EAST DEBATE, MAY 11, 2009 ¶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 the Security Council debate on the Middle East scheduled for May 11, and for its public statements about the debate. ¶2. (U) Talking points: -- Thank the Secretary General for his report. Our meeting here today under the distinguished leadership of Foreign Minister Lavrov underscores the importance the world community places on achieving a secure, comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East region, the cornerstone of which is the two-state solution, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security. -- A comprehensive peace, including the two-state solution, remains the objective of the United States as well, and we will pursue it vigorously in the coming months. President Obama is personally committed to this goal and continues to exert his direct leadership on this issue. As the President noted in his recent address to the Turkish parliament in Ankara, the parties have also committed to these goals in the Roadmap and at Annapolis. -- We are not interested in a lengthy, drawn-out process, but in results. We are optimistic that substantive and lasting progress can be made if we keep in mind the vision of a future Middle East in which Israel lives in peace and security alongside its Arab neighbors and the fruits of peace are cherished by all. As President Obama has noted, terrorism and rocket fire aimed at innocent Israelis is simply intolerable. And a future without hope for the Palestinians is intolerable as well. -- To this end, the distinguished United States Special Envoy for Middle East Peace, Senator George Mitchell, recently completed his third trip to the region. He is working with our Israeli and Arab partners, and our allies throughout the international community, to create the conditions for a peaceful resolution to the conflict and the establishment of an independent and viable Palestinian state. His work is also designed to prevent any new outbreak of violence that could set back our efforts. -- To further this cause, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu will visit Washington next week for discussions with President Obama, and Palestinian President Abbas will visit the week after. We look forward to constructive talks with these long-term friends, and to discussing how the international community can support these efforts with our Quartet partners and other allies. We believe the Quartet remains the most effective instrument for advancing the international community's engagement in the effort to bring lasting peace to the Middle East. -- As we move towards negotiations, it is critical for all parties to meet their existing obligations under the Roadmap. The Palestinian Authority must combat terror and incitement against Israel. The United States and its partners have provided funding and training for a reformed Palestinian security force, which has impressed everyone with its recent demonstrations of professionalism and effectiveness. Israel should not expand settlements, dismantle existing outposts, and should allow the Palestinians freedom of movement and access to economic opportunity and increased security responsibility. -- It is also critical that all states in the region consider what steps they can take to create an atmosphere conducive to successful negotiations. This is one reason that we intend to integrate the Arab Peace Initiative into our approach. In this regard, we welcome the remarks of King Abdullah of Jordan during his recent and productive visit to Washington, in which he said that America cannot be left by itself to do all the heavy lifting, so a group of countries, including Jordan, will do all they can to provide support. -- At the same time, it is essential to fully support the Palestinian Authority as it continues to improve the lives of ordinary Palestinians throughout the West Bank and Gaza with non-partisan, transparent, and accountable programs. The World Bank and the IMF have endorsed the Authority's budgetary and financial controls in accounting for the more than $1.7 billion contributed to it by all donors in 2008. We in the international community must continue to support the legitimate Palestinian leadership, and regional states have a special responsibility in this regard. The United States is proud, as am I, to have it as a partner in advancing the cause of peace. It is imperative that President Abbas, Prime Minister Fayyad, and the Palestinian Authority are able to demonstrate that negotiations, not terrorism and armed resistance, are the path to an independent and viable Palestinian state. -- In this context, it is important for all UN members, and Arab states especially, to recognize that the Quartet principles represent the essential building blocks of a Palestinian state. Palestinian reconciliation on terms that do not uphold the Quartet principles would only serve to delay the realization of Palestinians' legitimate aspirations for statehood. -- All UN member states, including regional states, must also work to ensure that the illicit smuggling of arms and ammunition into Gaza ends so that Hamas does not restock its arsenal and instigate another conflict. We are strongly supportive of reopening the Gaza border crossings in a controlled, sustained, and continuous manner, with an appropriate monitoring regime with international and Palestinian Authority participation. This will be achieved via dialogue in the spirit of meeting humanitarian needs, not via terrorist intimidation and violence. -- Only if raised: It is also important for this Council to avoid creating controversy where none exists. To cite a recent example, the Secretary-General and Israel are working together constructively to address the recommendations of the Board of Inquiry into incidents at UN facilities in the recent conflict in Gaza. We welcome this progress. The Council has never micro-managed the work of Secretary-General in relation to Boards of Inquiry and safeguarding UN personnel in the past, and should not do so now for political motives. -- Separately, we also look forward to the upcoming elections in Lebanon, which must be free, fair and unmarred by violence. We continue to support the full implementation of Security Council Resolutions 1559 and 1701 as the most assured means to protect Lebanon's hard-won sovereignty and independence. We must continue to insist upon an end to weapons smuggling and on the disarmament of all militias in Lebanon, including Hizballah. -- We must look beyond the smoke of war and avoid the easy temptations of recrimination and rancor. Rather, we must focus on a shared vision of peace and security. It should be all of our roles to help the parties move forward in pursuit of peace and do nothing to hinder their efforts. -- The stakes for peace are high. They are the difference between the people of the region and their children living fulfilling, prosperous lives, or having to face continued instability and round after round of violence and terror. Great leaders of the past, such as Anwar Sadat and Yitzhak Rabin, have selflessly devoted themselves to this cause. The question for our generation is whether history will place us in the camp of the peacemakers, or among those who let this problem go unresolved. End talking points. CLINTON