Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said today that he would allow Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat to travel to this month's Arab League summit in Beirut once the Tenet cease-fire plan went into effect. Implementation of the Tenet plan also served as a condition for a possible meeting between Arafat and U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney at an undetermined date in the future.

Sharon and Cheney made the remarks concerning Arafat at a joint press conference this morning in Jerusalem. Cheney reportedly came to Israel with a strong request that Sharon allow Arafat to travel to Beirut. Arafat's travel freedom would enable the Saudi Arabians to present their peace initiative calling for a full peace with Israel in exchange for full Israeli withdrawals, would facilitate efforts to achieve a cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinians, and would allow the Americans to concentrate on efforts to form a coalition in advance of a military strike against Iraq, media sources reported.

Speaking yesterday, Cheney reiterated the Bush administration's vision of two states - Israel and Palestine - "living together in peace and security." To achieve that vision, Cheney called on "Arafat to live up to his commitment to renounce once and for all the use of violence as a political weapon and to exert a 100 percent effort to stamp out terrorism."

American officials confirmed this morning that Cheney would not meet with Arafat on his whirlwind visit to the Middle East. Officials said that Cheney did not want to serve as a messenger between Israel and the Palestinians, and also did not want to grant Arafat a public relations victory by holding high-ranking talks with him.

Palestinian officials, including Palestinian Legislative Council Speaker Abu Ala and senior negotiator Saeb Erekat, said they would boycott the vice president. PA minister Ziyad Abu Ziyad told Israel Radio that he was "disappointed" by the decision, because the U.S. had to "prove it was neutral" in its mediation efforts to resolve the conflict.

Once the Tenet plan went into effect, Cheney said at the press conference, he would agree to meet with Arafat. "I told the prime minister that I would be ready to meet with Chairman Arafat in the period ahead at a site in the region to be determined," Cheney said.

Cheney said that special envoy Anthony Zinni would be passing on this message to Arafat in Ramallah today. The vice president added that he hoped Arafat "would speak to his people" about a cease-fire and "issue instructions to enforce" a truce.

Arafat might not be able to return
Sharon said he told the vice president that Israel's decision to allow Arafat to leave the Palestinian territories was "conditional on the implementation of the Tenet plan." Sharon did not rule out the possibility that he would not allow Arafat to return from Beirut if the Palestinian leader's behavior at the summit amounted to incitement, or if major terrorist attacks occurred in his absence.

"I think he understands or is starting to understand the importance of making peace here. If it is clear to us he did not act in this way, the government will meet and will have to take a decision. I don't rule out any possibilities," Sharon said.

Sharon said his government's objective was "to reach an immediate cease fire and cessation of terrorism and to begin the implementation of the Tenet plan." Sharon said that he wanted to proceed, as well, to implementation of the Mitchell Commission's recommendations and to diplomatic negotiations. "For real peace, Israel is willing to make painful compromises, but there will be no compromises with regards to security [for Israel's citizens]. The cessation of violence is the condition for any progress," he said.

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