By NNN-KUNA
Paris : As the peace process continues to mark time and the danger of a vacuum persists, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner on Saturday begins his third visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories in nine months to recall the commitments of the parties to a negotiated settlement and urge them to make the sacrifices needed to achieve this.
Kouchner will meet with all of the principals in both Israel and the Palestinian territories and he will reaffirm Frances commitment to the peace process that was set in motion again in Annapolis last November and which found a significant financial partnership in the Paris conference in December.
At the Paris venue, over USD 7.6 billion were pledged by the international community, largely represented and eager to accompany the Palestinians towards statehood.
Kuwait was one of the leading donors at the conference, pledging USD 300 million.
While the United States is hoping a Palestinian State can emerge by the end of this year, a parting shot from President George W. Bush, there is some scepticism this will happen unless there are serious compromises from both sides.
“On this path to peace, where painful compromises will have to be made, France, while not wanting to interfere in ongoing negotiations, is ready to bring any necessary support to encourage all parties to move forward,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Pascale Andreani said when announcing the visit earlier.
Kouchner will be pushing for “concrete progress on the ground,” officials here said. But he will also be calling on both sides to make these “painful compromises” that may not be politically palatable.
Included in the Palestinian compromises is certain to be further pressure on the Palestinian Authority to improve its security apparatus.
But more painful is the evident truth that Palestinian refugees are more and more certain to have to renounce the right of return to their homeland in Israel and from which they were expelled after Israel was founded in 1948.
This would have to involve a massive financial settlement for the refugees and a reorganization of the Palestinian “Diaspora” on an unprecedented level, as some estimates put the number of refugees at well above five million spread across a number of Arab and other countries.
Territorial arrangements and concessions would also be necessary between the two sides and discussions over the status of Jerusalem are certain to be difficult, to say the least.
While pressure has been brought to bear on Israel to renounce ongoing settlements and accept a rework of its illegal wall and de facto border, the Palestinians may also be brought under pressure to cede certain areas to Israel in exchange for contiguous zones near the West Bank.
France says it does not want to intercede between the two major partners in the talks, but it remains available to help where useful.
While in Israel, Kouchner will meet with President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, as well as with his Israeli counterpart, Tzipi Livni and with Defence Minister Ehud Barak.
A meeting is also planned with a number of opposition figures like Binyamin Netanyahu.
In the Occupied Territories, Kouchner will meet with President Mahmoud Abbas. He will also hold talks with Prime Minister Salam Fayyad to discuss the situation and, particularly, the follow up to the Paris Conference which raised almost USD 7.7 billion for a new Palestinian state and of which some funds are already being distributed to finance projects and provide budgetary aid to the Palestinian Authority.
The French Foreign Ministry has also of late expressed “grave concern” for the humanitarian situation in Gaza, where Israel has been reducing energy supplies.
France has, on several occasions, condemned the Israeli blockade of Gaza that has prevented humanitarian and essential supplies from getting into the enclave.