Joint press conference: Tony Blair and Yasser Arafat

15 October 2001

Following the Prime Minister's talks withPresident of the Palestinian authority Yasser Arafat both leaders held a press conference to brief the public on their discussions.

Tony Blair: Good afternoon everyone. First of all I want to thank the President of the Palestinian authority, Yasser Arafat for coming to London today, this is our eleventh meeting since I became Prime Minister. We have had a very good discussion focusing on the Middle East peace process and the international situation since the dreadful events of September the eleventh.

On the Middle East peace process we are in complete agreement that now is the right time to reinvigorate this process. We both recognise that this is a time to act with new resolve, too many innocent Palestinians and innocent Israelis have died in recent weeks, months and indeed years. We have a chance now today and in the weeks and months to come to put right the injustices that have for too long blighted our world and the Middle East in particular. The international community has been clear and decisive in its rejection of the evil of terrorism and the murderous intent of Osama bin Laden and the Al Quaida network. We must now be equally clear that it is important that we move forward the process of peace in the Middle East as I have said on many occasions. We have agreed that negotiations not violence is the means.

I said to the President that I applauded his efforts to control violent rejectionist groups within the ranks of the Palestinian people, I recognise that Palestinian violence has significantly reduced in the last week. It is vital for both sides especially when faced with provocation from extremists, to hold fast and to maintain a one hundred percent effort to eradicate the violence that kills not only innocent people but the hopes and aspirations of the vast majority of ordinary people. And we must be clear that no less than a hundred percent effort will do. But the international community must also be clear about the goal. To end the suffering of the Palestinians living in poverty and without hope and to give them the peace and justice they need and at the same time for Israelis to feel confident in their own security, free from terrorism in all its forms.

A viable Palestinian state as part of a negotiated and agreed settlement which guarantees peace and security for Israel is the objective. The end we desire therefore is a just peace in which Israelis and Palestinians live side by side each in their own state, secure and able to prosper and develop. That is the only sensible outcome and we must seize this moment to make progress towards that end otherwise more bloodshed and violence will drive out the overwhelming desire for peace in the region and the wider world. To that end it is now time for all UN Security Council resolutions to be fully implemented. On the wider international situation let me say this, first that our attacks on the Al Quaida network and in Afghanistan are a regrettable but necessary first step in the war against terrorism unleashed by Osama bin Laden and his Al Quaida organisation aided and abetted by the Taliban leadership. And this is a terrorism which threatens the whole world including our Arab and Muslim brothers and sisters.

Secondly, that ours is a war against terror and against those who use terror to achieve their ends. It is not, repeat not a war against Islam. The vast majority of Muslims condemned bin Laden whose acts are wholly contrary to the proper teaching of Islam. And thirdly Osama bin Laden does not speak for the Palestinian people and their cause. In fact his actions are designed to threaten the very fragile situation in the Middle East. The final thing I would say is this, there are people who suggested that our desire to reinvigorate the Middle East peace process is simply prompted by the events of the eleventh of September. Let me remind you that that is wrong.

In recent months we have had for example the Tennet report, the Mitchell Plan, before the eleventh of September we were all, including the US administration working hard to get the parties back in to talks and negotiation in an atmosphere of security and trust. This is therefore the time for courage, for leadership, for taking the decisions necessary to achieve what any sensible sane person acting with reason and justice wants to see. And that is Israelis and Palestinians putting behind them the bitterness of the past and on the basis of mutual recognition and respect reaching out to a better, more peaceful, more prosperous future for all. That is an objective we can achieve if we find the will and determination to achieve it. Thank you.

Yasser Arafat (Through Interpreter): Let me first express my deepest appreciation to you Mr Prime Minister for the comprehensive and very constructive meeting we just had. In our comprehensive meeting with the Prime Minister many important meetings were discussed. First of all let me reiterate as I reiterated to the Prime Minister in our meeting and I will repeat it in front of you, our condemnation of the terrorist acts witnessed, done in New York and Washington. We are against all form of terrorism included state sponsored terrorism. Terrorism is a phenomena not linked to a certain religion, to a people or to a geographic location. Fighting terror is not a war against Arabs or Muslims or Islam. Islam is a religion of graciousness, love and peace like all other religions. I recite to you from the Koran 'All people, we created you from a man and a woman, we made you many different peoples and tribes so you can get acquainted. Those most honourable in the sight of God are those most gracious or believer or faithful.' Our Palestinian cause is a just cause. We are supported fully by the international community, supported the Arabs, the Muslims the Christians, it is the Holy Land. There can be no mix between our just cause and the objectives and methods that are unjust like the terrorist acts and the killing of civilians like what happened recently in the United States. This is the position actually of the Arab world and the Muslim world (UNCLEAR) in the recent meetings in Dohar (?) Qatar. The Foreign Ministers, that is correct.

Yasser Arafat: (UNCLEAR)...Sahib is not translating accurately The Foreign Ministers, the Arab Foreign Ministers and the Muslim Foreign Ministers.

Yasser Arafat (Through Interpreter): In this Foreign Ministers meeting of the Islamic nations and the Arab countries held in Dohar (?) the Palestinian clergymen, Muslims and Christians participated...

Yasser Arafat: Christians and Muslims.

Yasser Arafat (Through Interpreter):...Christians and Muslims. OK.

Yasser Arafat: You have to be accurately translating it because we, according to our religiousness, Christians should be mentioned before the Muslims. (UNCLEAR) our religious. Yes.

Yasser Arafat (Through Interpreter): I spoke to his excellency the Prime Minister about the suffering of the Palestinian people and what the three point two million Palestinians face from (UNCLEAR) siege, bombardment and assassinations, the continuation of the Israeli settlement activities, the demolition and destruction of homes, farms, factories. In spite of all of this I reiterate Prime Minister, our full commitment to the cease-fire I declared so we can achieve immediately the implementation of the Mitchell recommendations and the George Tennet's understanding and the other signed agreement between us and them. (UNCLEAR) quarters, your Excellency Mr Prime Minister, from London I call upon the Israeli government to immediately join us in resuming the permanent (UNCLEAR) negotiations immediately. So we can reach a just comprehensive and lasting solution to all issues on the agenda, that is an agreed agenda. Jerusalem, settlements, borders, refugees, security, water in consistency with the implementation of Security Council Resolutions two four two, three three eight, four two five and general assembly resolution one nine four and all other relevant resolutions. It is high time to end the Israeli occupation. It is high time to put an end to the Israeli occupation, to put an end to the conflict between the two sides, to establish a Palestinian independent state with East Jerusalem which we call holy noble Jerusalem as its capital. A Palestinian state next to the state of Israel so, so our children and their children, our people and their people and all the people of the Middle East region can live in peace, security and stability. On this occasion I am not going to forget to mention my late partner in the making of the peace of brave Mr Yitzhak Rabin, the late Prime Minister of Israel, the man who I signed the first agreement with.

Question: Prime Minster and President of the Palestinian Authority, opinion in the Middle East appears to have been polarised by recent events and won't you have to wait for a calmer period before you can reinvigorate the peace process?

Yasser Arafat (Through Interpreter): On the contrary I see it is time to reinvigorate the peace process. Yesterday my colleagues, he mentioned me, Sahib and Mr Abala the speaker of the Palestinian Parliament met with Shimon Perez and his colleagues yesterday and there were three other meetings conducted last week with Shimon Perez and us. Before that the President had met him in the Gaza International airport. And also there was a meeting between the two, President Arafat and Mr Perez in Cairo and the residents of President Mubarak of Egypt, and in that meeting in Cairo both the Foreign Minister of Egypt Mr (UNCLEAR) and special adviser to President Mubarak Doctor (UNCLEAR) spoke with us in the meeting. Also there was another, I should also recall that I had a meeting with Mr Perez in Lisbon Portugal which also was attended by Mr Gorteres (?) the President of Portugal and the Prime Minister of Norway at that time Mr Egland. And before that myself and my colleague Doctor Shad, we met in Athens. We are determined, we are determined to continue reviving the peace process and we need the help of the Prime Minister because, I need the help, I need the help of the Prime Minister not only in (UNCLEAR) Britain but for the influence they have over the European Union and the special relationship he has with the United States President and also with the rest of the world. You have a very special role to play Mr Prime Minister, it is a new assignment from the President.

Question:. Prime Minister, Chairman Arafat, can you tell us what indications you have had if any from the American government that they are also seizing the moment and that they are going to re-engage and they are going to put more pressure on Mr Sharon?

Tony Blair: Perhaps I can answer that first. The first thing is to say is that well before the eleventh of September there were a whole series of proposals being worked on, the Tennet Plan, the Mitchell Plan grew out of American involvement specifically in the Middle East peace process. And as you probably know there were further proposals being worked on even before the eleventh of September took place. And I think that everyone understands that now is the moment with the renewed sense of purpose and urgency to move things forward on the basis of justice and peace. And I believe that that can be done now. It is for the Americans to answer in respect of their own position of course, but I know this is something that they are thinking about very carefully because people understand its importance. And its importance in its own right irrespective of what happened on the eleventh of September. Sorry, please?

Yasser Arafat (Through Interpreter): Bare in mind that the Madrid peace conference of nineteen ninety one was initiated by President Bush the father and then we followed intensively with President Clinton. I would just like to confirm that before September eleventh we have been having intensive dialogue with President Bush and the American administration on how to revive the peace process and move back on track. What was declared recently by President Bush should have been declared before concerning the Palestinian right to (UNCLEAR) establish their own state, it was supposed to be declared before September eleventh.

Tony Blair: Sorry, the gentleman behind you there?

Question: How can you, both of you (UNCLEAR) this is going to be implemented this time i.e. all the things that Chairman Arafat mentioned? Jerusalem as capital of Palestine and return of refugees? Can the Prime Minister and Chairman Arafat assure that this time, it is going to happen?

Tony Blair: There are many, many difficult issues for this negotiation. But the one thing that is clear is that the only way that they are ever going to be resolved is indeed by sitting down and talking and discussing and working out a just and peaceful solution. So that both Palestinians and Israelis can live side by side in peace with one another. And you know, we have own experience of a peace process in this country from Northern Ireland. And what ever the difficulties, what ever the obstacles, however much mistrust and bitterness there may be as a result of the past it is always better that people are talking and negotiating and trying to find a way forward, face to face discussing the problem. Rather than fighting with violence, with terrorism or allowing extremists on any side to move in to a vacuum left by the absence of a political process. So in my view in the end what ever, what ever we do between now and restart of the process at some point it will have to restart because that is the only way. And the only question to my mind is how much more bloodshed and violence and bitterness do we generate before we do what we know we are going to have to do in order to get this issue settled?

Yasser Arafat: We are not looking for, we are not asking for the moon. We are asking the United Nation resolutions to be implemented what had been agreed to be implemented, what had been agreed upon the agree, all the meetings which took place between, since Madrid conference and now to be implemented. Including United Nation resolutions so we are not asking for the moon and this had been agreed upon in, from Oslo agreement, from Madrid conference and Camp David in White River Agreement, in (UNCLEAR), in (UNCLEAR) in all this meetings.

Question: Prime Minister I wonder if you could answer the cynics who say that the activity undertaken by the West and Britain and United States is designed only to placate the situation in the Middle East and to bring about consolidation of the coalition?

Tony Blair: Well I will answer that very simply, this is my eleventh meeting with President Arafat. Long before the eleventh of September ever took place as I said to you a moment or two ago we had the Tennet plan, the Mitchell plan, we have had huge engagement of not just the Americans and ourselves but other countries too, trying to find a way forward. But I think it is right with renewed sense of urgency and purpose that we try and find a just, a just and lasting solution. And in the end this is, this is, this is an issue that I have seen myself first hand when I was in the Gaza some years ago of bomb, in which people live. We know the basic perameters of any peaceful and lasting solution. And that is that side by side in their own states, the Israelis and the Palestinians live together in peace and harmony. That they develop and prosper as neighbouring countries can so that the living standards of the people increase, so that they see hope and justice in the work that they do of an ordinary kind. Rather than being persuaded in to acts of political extremism or terrorism that offer no future. This is what we have to do. Now we know that in the end we will have to return to those basic principles and what I would say to you is that this is something that I know from my own discussions with the Americans they were working upon and thinking about before the eleventh of September ever took place.

Reporter: Prime Minister...

Tony Blair: Sorry can I just...

Question: ...reported baring in mind that you both accepted that a new impetus must be given to the peace process by what happened on September the eleventh. I think it is very important to ask you why Osama bin Laden is wrong when he says as he has said, that he is calling for all Muslims to rise up in support of the Palestinian cause, why is he wrong?

Yasser Arafat (Thorough Interpreter): What I have said is very, very clear, Islam as a religion prevents anyone, forbids anyone to harm any civilian, any innocent people around the world.

Question: (UNCLEAR)...television. (Question in Arabic).

Yasser Arafat (Through Interpreter):...European Union and states around the world.

Question: In Afghanistan the Northern Alliance is now saying they are not going to advance, the aircrafts appear to be running low on targets to bomb, has this military action got to move to another phase for it to get anywhere?

Tony Blair: First of all I should say to you that the military action is achieving its aim of disabling the military infrastructure of the Taliban regime and also destroying the terrorist camps of the Al Quaida network. We have always made it clear however that this is part of an operation that will have many different aspects to it. And without discussing the military operations and what action we intend to take, that remains the position.

Tony Blair: Yes sir?

Question:. Prime Minister just most recently Israeli Prime Minister Sharon reaffirmed the policy the Israeli policy of assassination, the large swathe of public opinion in the Arab and Muslim world would regard that as terrorism, what do you say to that?

Tony Blair: What I say to that is what we have said all the way through, that we want an end to violence and restraint on all sides. But the way that we are going to get peace, a lasting peace in the Middle East peace process is not by supporting the activities of the Al Quaida network and Osama bin Laden and those people whose only weapon is destruction and terror. What we need is to sit down, talk and negotiate and that is precisely what we are asking for.

Question: You have talked about starting the peace process immediately, what pressure are you going to be able to bring on Ariel Sharon, the Israeli Prime Minister in order to meet the sort of things you have both been talking about today?

Tony Blair: In the end this process can only move forward if people want it to. But what we are trying to do is to create the conditions in which it can move forward. Where there can be lasting justice and peace with Israelis and Palestinians living side by side, that is what we wish to achieve, that is something that we are discussing at the moment, to see how this process can be restarted. As you know there are ideas being worked upon by the Americans, by others and without entering in to the detail of that now I believe that it is possible to move this process forward again but the will has got to be there to do it. And our desire is to create the context of sufficient confidence and security in which it can now move forward. Yes, yes sir?

Question: Mr Prime Minister during the last month you are talking about the International negotiations (?) in Kuwait, Kosovo and Bosnia. At the same time you have resolution like one nine four since nineteen forty eight, why didn't you use the same weight to implement these resolutions?

Tony Blair: We have always said that the only way to get a lasting and just solution is through this Middle East peace process and that is what President Arafat supports, it is what every sensible person in this situation should support. And it is a process in which Israel and the Palestinian authority have been engaged for a significant process of time. We support that. The reason why I have raised the issue of our action in Kosovo is because to those people who say falsely that our action is designed against Islam or the Muslim world, I have pointed out the last military action of a significant type that I authorised was in order to defend innocent Muslims as they were in Kosovo subject to ethnic cleansing by people who called themselves again in my view again falsely Orthodox Christians. OK, right, thank you we just take one last question there.

Question: (Question in Arabic).

Yasser Arafat (Through Interpreter): My relation with the Prime Minister is beyond demanding or asking for promises. I think the Prime Minister is fully committed in our lations, is fully committed to achieve this endeavour of peace.