Abbas takes Arafat's place as White House guest

25 July 2003, 18:00 PM

Reuters, Washington

Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas takes the place of his mentor President Yasser Arafat as the Palestinian guest in the White House on Friday, initiating a new phase in Palestinian relations with the United States.

Arafat, who has been cooped up for months in the West Bank town of Ramallah, has not been to Washington since President Bush took office in January 2001. Bush declared him persona non grata last year and has now pinned his plans for Middle East peace on Abbas, better known as Abu Mazen. It is Abu Mazen's first visit to the United States since taking office in April and starting to carry out the peace plan known as the "road map," which foresees an independent Palestinian state by 2005 living in peace with Israel.

The plan has run into disputes over which side should do what next. Abu Mazen wants Israel to release thousands of Palestinian prisoners, while Israel wants Abu Mazen to close down Palestinian militant groups.

Abu Mazen is expected to present Bush with a long list of Palestinian requests on Friday, including pressure on Israel to stop work on a security fence in the West Bank and freeze construction at Jewish settlements.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will give his point of view when he sees Bush in Washington next Tuesday.

Abu Mazen told the Council on Foreign Relations on Thursday evening that Israel's approach to the peace plan had shown a "pattern of hesitant implementation" from the start.

"Without bold steps we will not succeed," he added.

He argued that militant groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad understood his commitment to ensure that the Palestinian government is the only armed force in Palestinian areas.

But he is reluctant to meet Israeli and US demands that he disarm the militants so they never attack Israelis again.

He warned the Israelis of unspecified consequences if they do not satisfy the basic Palestinian demand that they end the occupation which began in Gaza and the West Bank in 1967.

"The burden really is on the shoulders of the Israelis... and there are certain things that we expect them to do regarding the release of the prisoners, regarding the freezing of settlement activity, as well as the withdrawal.