Peres tells UN conference: Peace more possible with Saudi plan

President Shimon Peres told a UN panel of world leaders at an interfaith conference yesterday that the Saudi Peace Initiative should be seriously considered as an opportunity for real progress in the Middle East peace process. "These expressions in the Arab peace initiative are inspirational and promising - a serious opening for real progress," Peres said. "We cannot change the past, however, we can shape our future." The Israeli president added that Israel's leaders were willing to make the compromises necessary for real political progress. Peres said that regional peace would require a bilateral agreement with the Palestinians and a "sharing of the painful cost". A price, Peres said, Israel is ready to take in the future and has been ready to take in the past.

The interfaith dialogue, which Saudi Arabia urged the United Nations to initiate, was opened by Saudi King Abdullah. During the opening address, King Abdullah called terrorism the enemy of all religions and called for a united front to promote tolerance. The conference marked the first time that a Saudi king stayed in the room to listen to a speech delivered by an Israeli representative.

The Saudi proposal which was launched in 2002 and ratified by Arab foreign ministers last year in Damascus, calls for the full recognition of the State of Israel by pan-Arab countries in exchange for Israel's withdraw to the 1967 borders. The initiative has recently risen again in Israeli political circles. A month ago, Defence Minister Ehud Barak confirmed that leaders had been discussing the plan as a comprehensive solution to end the conflict. Israel leaders believe there is a mutual interest with moderate Arab governments, like Saudi Arabia, to act upon the threats coming from Iran and non-state entities like Hezbollah and Hamas.

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