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Global Leaders Call for Action on Arab-Israeli Settlement

Brussels / Washington / New York / London / Amman, 4 October 2006: 135 respected global leaders -- former presidents, prime ministers, foreign and defence ministers, congressional leaders and heads of international organisations ­-- have today joined in a call for urgent international action to comprehensively resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict.

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Brussels / Washington / New York / London / Amman, 4 October 2006: 135 respected global leaders -- former presidents, prime ministers, foreign and defence ministers, congressional leaders and heads of international organisations ­-- have today joined in a call for urgent international action to comprehensively resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Their statement (full text and signatories below) says there is a “desperate need for fresh thinking and the injection of new political will” if the conflict, “with all its terrible consequences”, is ever to be settled. They say that ideally there would be a new all-in international conference to kick-start detailed negotiations, but that whether or not this can happen soon, there should be:

“There is a real hunger out there for present-day political leaders to take hold of this catastrophically divisive issue and resolve it once and for all,” said Gareth Evans, President of the International Crisis Group, which organised the statement.

“It is remarkable how much immediate support there was for this statement from so many highly experienced, top-level former public sector leaders from around the world and across the political spectrum. Like the great majority of ordinary Israelis and Palestinians, they just want to get things moving now, cut through the obstacles, and put in place the elements of a sustainable peace.”

This statement is part of Crisis Group’s new global advocacy initiative, announced on 22 September, designed to generate fresh political momentum behind a comprehensive settlement following the chaos of the last few months. Other elements involve brainstorming sessions on strategy with UN, Quartet and regional experts, led by Middle East Program Director Rob Malley; a particular effort to stimulate a bipartisan rethink of US policy; task force visits to key capitals; and a continuing stream of Crisis Group reports and briefings containing detailed analysis and policy recommendations.

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Towards a Comprehensive Settlement of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

With the Middle East immersed in its worst crisis for years, we call for urgent international action towards a comprehensive settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Everyone has lost in this conflict except the extremists throughout the world who prosper on the rage that it continues to provoke. Every passing day undermines prospects for a peaceful, enduring solution. As long as the conflict lasts, it will generate instability and violence in the region and beyond.

The outlines of what is needed are well known, based on UN Security Council resolutions 242 of 1967 and 338 of 1973, the Camp David peace accords of 1978, the Clinton Parameters of 2000, the Arab League Initiative of 2002, and the Roadmap proposed in 2003 by the Quartet (UN, US, EU and Russia). The goal must be security and full recognition to the state of Israel within internationally recognized borders, an end to the occupation for the Palestinian people in a viable independent, sovereign state, and the return of lost land to Syria.

We believe the time has come for a new international conference, ideally held as soon as possible and attended by all relevant players, at which all the elements of a comprehensive peace agreement would be mapped, and momentum generated for detailed negotiations.

Whether or not such an early conference can be convened, there are crucial steps that can and should be taken by the key players, including:

• Support for a Palestinian national unity government, with an end to the political and financial boycott of the Palestinian Authority.
• Talks between Israel and the Palestinian leadership, mediated by the Quartet and reinforced by the participation of the Arab League and key regional countries, on rapidly enhancing mutual security and allowing revival of the Palestinian economy.
• Talks between the Palestinian leadership and the Israeli government, sponsored by a reinforced Quartet, on the core political issues that stand in the way of achieving a final status agreement.
• Parallel talks of the reinforced Quartet with Israel, Syria and Lebanon, to discuss the foundations on which Israeli-Syrian and Israeli-Lebanese agreements can be reached.

Nobody underestimates the intractability of the underlying issues or the intensity of feelings they provoke. But if the Arab-Israeli conflict, with all its terrible consequences, is ever to be resolved, there is a desperate need for fresh thinking and the injection of new political will. The times demand no less.

Morton Abramowitz Former US Assistant Secretary of State and Ambassador to Turkey and Thailand Adnan Abu-Odeh Former Political Adviser to King Abdullah II and King Hussein, Jordan Esko Aho Former Prime Minister, Finland Ali Alatas Former Foreign Minister, Indonesia Abdul-Kareem Al-Eryani Former Prime Minister, Yemen Raúl Alfonsín Former President, Argentina Lord Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon Former UN High Representative for Bosnia & Herzegovina Lloyd Axworthy Former Foreign Minister, Canada Peter Barry Former Foreign Minister, Ireland Shlomo Ben-Ami Former Foreign Minister, Israel Alexander Bessmertnykh Former Foreign Minister, Soviet Union Carl Bildt Former Prime Minister, Sweden Valdis Birkavs Former Prime Minister, Latvia James Bolger Former Prime Minister, New Zealand Kjell Magne Bondevik Former Prime Minister, Norway Boutros Boutros-Ghali Former Secretary-General, UN Lakhdar Brahimi Former Foreign Minister, Algeria, and UN Special Representative Gro Harlem Brundtland Former Prime Minister, Norway Zbigniew Brzezinski Former National Security Advisor to the President, United States Kim Campbell Former Prime Minister, Canada; Secretary General, Club of Madrid Ingvar Carlsson Former Prime Minister, Sweden Frank Carlucci Former Secretary of Defense, United States Jimmy Carter 39th President, United States; Nobel Peace Prize 2002 Maria Livanos Cattaui Former Secretary-General, International Chamber of Commerce Naresh Chandra Former Indian Cabinet Secretary and Ambassador to US Claude Cheysson Former Foreign Minister, France Jean Chrétien Former Prime Minister, Canada Wesley Clark Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, Europe Gerard Collins Former Foreign Minister, Ireland Pat Cox Former President, European Parliament Jacques Delors Former President, European Commission Gianni De Michelis Former Foreign Minister, Italy Ruth Dreifuss Former President, Switzerland Roland Dumas Former Foreign Minister, France Shirin Ebadi Nobel Peace Prize 2003; Iran Uffe Ellemann-Jensen Former Foreign Minister, Denmark Gareth Evans President, International Crisis Group; Former Foreign Minister, Australia Mark Eyskens Former Prime Minister, Belgium José María Figueres Former President, Costa Rica Vigdís Finnbogadóttir Former President, Iceland Joschka Fischer Former Foreign Minister, Germany Malcolm Fraser Former Prime Minister, Australia Anil K Gayan Former Foreign Minister, Mauritius Leslie H Gelb President Emeritus, Council on Foreign Relations, United States Bronisław Geremek Former Foreign Minister, Poland Kiro Gligorov Former President, Macedonia Richard Goldstone Former Prosecutor, International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia Felipe González Márquez Former Prime Minister, Spain

Mikhail S Gorbachev Former President, Soviet Union; Nobel Peace Prize 1990 I K Gujral Former Prime Minister, India Tenzin Gyatso 14th Dalai Lama; Nobel Peace Prize 1989 Vahit M Halefoğlu Former Foreign Minister, Turkey Lee Hamilton Former Congressman, United States; Director, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Bob Hawke Former Prime Minister, Australia Bill Hayden Former Governor-General and Foreign Minister, Australia Carla Hills Former Trade Representative, United States Lena Hjelm-Wallén Former Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sweden Raffi K Hovannisian Former Foreign Minister, Armenia Lord Howe of Aberavon Former Foreign Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister, UK John Hume Nobel Peace Prize 1998; Northern Ireland Lord Hurd of Westwell Former Foreign Secretary, UK George Iacovou Former Foreign Minister, Cyprus Anwar Ibrahim Former Deputy Prime Minister, Malaysia James Ingram Former Executive Director, UN World Food Programme Asma Jahangir Chair, Pakistan Human Rights Commission; UN Special Rapporteur Max Jakobson Former Ambassador of Finland to the UN Lionel Jospin Former Prime Minister, France Marwan S Kasim Former Foreign Minister, Jordan Kim Dae-jung Former President, Republic of Korea; Nobel Peace Prize 2000 F W de Klerk Former President, South Africa; Nobel Peace Prize 1993 Wim Kok Former Prime Minister, Netherlands Bernard Kouchner Founder, Médecins Sans Frontières; Former Minister, France, and UN Special Representative Milan Kučan Former President, Slovenia Aleksander Kwaśniewski Former President, Poland Ricardo Lagos Former President, Chile Zlatko Lagumdžija Former Prime Minister, Bosnia & Herzegovina Anthony Lake Former National Security Advisor to the President, United States Lee Hong-Koo Former Prime Minister, Republic of Korea Ahmed Maher Former Foreign Minister, Egypt Abdul Salam Majali Former Prime Minister, Jordan John Major Former Prime Minister, UK Barbara McDougall Former External Affairs Secretary, Canada Matthew F McHugh Former US Congressman and World Bank Counselor Robert McNamara Former Secretary of Defense, United States Rexhep Meidani Former President, Albania Najib Mikati Former Prime Minister, Lebanon Mike Moore Former Prime Minister, New Zealand; Former Director-General, WTO Marwan Muasher Former Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, Jordan Klaus Naumann Former Chairman, North Atlantic Military Committee of NATO, Germany Boyko Noev Former Minister of Defence, Bulgaria Ayo Obe Chair, World Movement for Democracy, Nigeria Sadako Ogata Former UN High Commissioner for Refugees Lord Owen of the City of Plymouth Former Foreign Secretary, UK Anand Panyarachun Former Prime Minister, Thailand Andrés Pastrana Former President, Colombia

Lord Patten of Barnes Co-Chair, International Crisis Group; Former European Commissioner for External Relations Thomas Pickering Co-Chair, International Crisis Group; Former US Ambassador to the UN, Russia, India, Israel, Jordan, El Salvador and Nigeria Josep Piqué Former Foreign Minister, Spain Surin Pitsuwan Former Foreign Minister, Thailand Yevgeny Primakov Former Prime Minister, Russia Jorge Quiroga Former President, Bolivia Augusto Ramírez Ocampo Former Foreign Minister, Colombia Fidel V Ramos Former President, Philippines Poul Nyrup Rasmussen Former Prime Minister, Denmark Abdur-ra’uf Rawabdeh Former Prime Minister, Jordan Malcolm Rifkind Former Foreign Secretary, UK Lord Robertson of Port Ellen Former Defence Secretary, UK, and NATO Secretary-General Mary Robinson Former President, Ireland, and High Commissioner for Human Rights Michel Rocard Former Prime Minister, France Petre Roman Former Prime Minister, Romania Adam Daniel Rotfeld Former Foreign Minister, Poland Nafis Sadik Former Executive Director, UN Population Fund Mohamed Sahnoun Former Algerian Ambassador; UN Special Adviser Ghassan Salamé Former Culture Minister, Lebanon Salim Ahmed Salim Former Secretary General, OAU, and Prime Minister, Tanzania Jorge Sampaio Former President, Portugal Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada Former President, Bolivia Mario Soares Former President, Portugal Stephen Solarz Former Chair, Africa & Asia Subcommittees, US Congress Cornelio Sommaruga Former President, International Committee of the Red Cross George Soros Chairman, Open Society Institute Pär Stenbäck Former Foreign Minister, Finland Thorvald Stoltenberg Former Foreign Minister, Norway HRH El Hassan bin Talal Founder, Arab Thought Forum, Jordan Leo Tindemans Former Prime Minister, Belgium Alex S Trigona Former Foreign Minister, Malta Desmond Tutu Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town; Nobel Peace Prize 1984 Cassam Uteem Former President, Mauritius Hans van den Broek Former Foreign Minister, Netherlands, and European Commissioner for External Relations Ed van Thijn Former Minister and Mayor of Amsterdam, Netherlands George Vassiliou Former President, Cyprus Hubert Védrine Former Foreign Minister, France Richard von Weizsäcker Former President, Germany Baroness Williams of Crosby Former Cabinet Minister, UK Ernesto Zedillo Former President, Mexico

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Names subsequently added:

  Garret FitzGerald
  Former Prime Minister, Ireland

  Franz Vranitzky
  Former Federal Chancellor, Austria

Organized by Crisis Group with assistance from the Club of Madrid and placed with support from the Radcliffe Foundation, Iara Lee & George Gund Foundation and Hamza Al Kholi.

www.crisisgroup.org