Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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March 14, 2007

Israel Says Saudi Plan Could Revive Peace Process
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=16A4EDA:A6F02AD83191E160DCCF5662EBA8BF989574F7DCC14957C0 Israel sees plan
proposed five years ago as starting point, while Arabs see it as end
game Israel is signaling a new willingness to open peace talks on the
basis of a Saudi Arabian initiative first proposed five years ago. But
as Robert Berger reports from VOA's Jerusalem bureau, Israel sees the
plan as a starting point, while the Arabs see it as the end game.

In a political turnaround, Israeli officials say the Saudi Arabian
peace initiative of 2002 can be an important step toward reviving the
peace process.







Shimon Peres speaks during a news conference at Japan National Press
Club in Tokyo, 13 March 2007"As an Arab position, it is progress, and
we would like to continue and negotiate," said Deputy Prime Minister
Shimon Peres. "But this is the opening position."

The Saudi initiative calls for a full Israeli withdrawal to the 1967
borders and the establishment of a Palestinian state in the West Bank
and East Jerusalem. In exchange, Israel would receive full diplomatic
recognition from the Arab world.

Israel rejected the plan five years ago because it would require the
Jewish state to relinquish Jerusalem's sacred Old City as well as all
the settlements it has built in the West Bank since the Six Day War in
1967.

Israel says it will never give up Jerusalem or dismantle all
settlements. But since direct talks with the Palestinians are going
nowhere and in light of the growing regional influence of Iran, Israel
wants to open a dialogue with moderate Arab countries. Those countries
are also concerned about Iran's support for radical elements in the
region, so there is a mutual interest in reviving the peace process.

Nevertheless, the right-wing opposition in Israel deeply opposes the
plan.

"The Saudi initiative, or the Arab peace initiative, in its present
form is a recipe for the destruction of Israel," says Zalman Shoval of
the hawkish Likud Party. He says the 1967 borders are indefensible.

"Israel cannot accept the matter of returning to the Green Line, the
4th of June 1967 border, as a precondition," he says.

The Saudi initiative is quickly rising to the top of the diplomatic
agenda in the Middle East. Arab leaders are expected to formally
revive the plan at a summit in Saudi Arabia at the end of the month.




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