Sharon meets with Rice on Gaza pullout
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-07-22 19:48

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met in Sharon'sranch in the southern Negev desert on Friday morning before Riceleft for Beirut on a surprise visit.

The two-hour meeting began after breakfast, which took place away from the media.

No details is immediately available yet, but Israeli Army Radio quoted an Israeli official as saying that the talks was "excellent"and the two sides "discussed efforts to coordinate the pullout with the Palestinians and possible political developments after the pullout."

The two sides also discussed Israel's request for aid totalling 2.2 billion US dollars over the next four years to pay for development of Negev and Galilee, two Israeli towns to house evacuated settlers, and for withdrawing Israel Defense Forces bases out of Gaza, a source close to Sharon said.

Following the meeting, Sharon showed Rice around his Sycamore Ranch.

Rice's whirlwind visit to the Mideast was designed to help coolan upswing of violence between Israel and the Palestinians.

Before the meeting with Sharon, Rice urged all parties involvedto work hard not to allow some "rejectionists to destroy this moment of hope."

"I think the issue is to work as hard as possible to prevent the worst outcomes and everybody has to play a part in that," Rice was quoted by media reports as saying.

She also said Israel should coordinate with the Palestinian National Authority on the Gaza pullout, which should form the basis of the renewal of the stalled Mideast peace process and help boost Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.

"The road map peace plan must be next on the agenda after the disengagement," Israeli officials quoted Rice as saying.

Meanwhile, Rice said the first step for the revival of peace talks was a Palestinian commitment to fighting terror.

After the Sharon-Rice meeting, the US top diplomat left for Beirut on a surprise visit to Lebanon, where she is expected to hold talks with pro-Syria Lebanese President Emile Lahoud and other high-ranking government officials.

Rice arrived in the region Thursday evening for a three-day visit that will include talks with Israeli and Palestinian officials.

Her visit is aimed at demonstrating America's involvement on the eve of disengagement and strengthening efforts at coordination between Israel and the Palestinian National Authority (PNA).

On Saturday, Rice will travel to the Palestinian areas and hold talks with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah. She is expected to urge the Palestinian side to make more efforts to rein in militants.

Israel is scheduled to evacuate some 8,500 settlers from all 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip and four of 120 in the West Bank next month.