Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live Today

Interview with Edward Djerejian

Aired April 09, 2002 - 14:35   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: For expert insight into the situation in the Mideast, and some views on getting a cease-fire and the peace process back on track, we are joined now by Edward Djerejian. He's the former U.S. ambassador to Israel who is the founding director of the Institute for Public Policy at Rice University. He joins us now from Houston, Texas.

Ambassador, good to see you.

EDWARD DJEREJIAN, FMR. AMB. TO ISRAEL: Good to see you.

PHILLIPS: We'll start with sort of a general question here, and ask you what you think the biggest challenge is here in the Middle East, when it comes to American and international diplomacy?

DJEREJIAN: I think the biggest challenge, immediately, is to get a viable and sustainable cease-fire so the blood-letting on both sides can stop and give an opportunity for diplomacy to begin to set in, in terms of security measures being put in place between the Israelis and the Palestinians, and confidence-building measures leading towards, hopefully, the beginnings or the re-beginnings of a political dialogue. That's the challenge.

That's what Secretary of State Colin Powell is coming into the region, in the first instance, to see if he can get the parties to stand down. And I think it's going to be very important in that context, that we get into a situation, what I would call the Tenet Plan, Mitchell Plan, plus, which is basically to get security measures, confidence building measures, and some sort of political framework that the Israelis and the Palestinians can gravitate towards, that the leadership on both sides can start explaining to their people why they have to stand down, that there is light at the end of the tunnel, there is a political process in the offer.

PHILLIPS: And, is meeting with Yasser Arafat, Colin Powell meeting with Yasser Arafat, is that key to this?

DJEREJIAN: Well, my view of that is that in diplomacy, as in politics, diplomats and interlocutors have to deal with the people who are in power. It's not a personality contest. It's not a question if you like someone or dislike them.

It's a question, who has the political power? Who do you have to deal with that can make decisions?And I think the United States has to deal with the people who wield the power on both sides.

PHILLIPS: Now there's talk of U.S. troops -- possibly, just talk -- coming to the Middle East and hitting the ground to monitor the situation. What do you think? Good idea, bad idea, dangerous idea?

DJEREJIAN: Well, the idea of having American troops is not new in Middle East diplomacy. As you know, the Camp David accords and the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from Sinai, we created the multilateral force, which includes American troops in the Sinai, and they've been there for many years, since '79.

When we were discussing possible peace between Israel and Syria, the idea was on the table that if the parties did agree to a peace settlement, and did agree to have an international military or monitoring presence, the Americans would consider participating in that. But first has to come security arrangements. Cease-fires, security arrangements, a political settlement of some sorts, and then the introduction of American personnel.

I think it would be very dangerous to put American personnel in such a fluid situation. I think you have to have at least a cease- fire and certain arrangements on the ground, before that can be contemplated.

PHILLIPS: Well, you talk about cease-fire. And the talks from the Palestinian side say cease-fire sounds great, but let's talk about complete withdrawal. Ariel Sharon comes forward and said OK, with pressure from President Bush, withdrawal will happen, but we're going to have these security zones.

No one seems to be able to define what these security zones mean. And that's not complete withdrawal.

DJEREJIAN: That's right. That's not complete withdrawal. The president has called for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the West Bank cities and towns they've been occupying. He's called for a stand-down of this military operation. He called on Arafat and the Palestinians to stop the terrorist attacks.

But you know, what's interesting here is that in Israel, there is a school of thought that, with the growing violence that perhaps the one thing Israel should do, in the absence of any hope of getting a peaceful settlement, is to build a wall, just like Bill Hemmer was reporting from the region.

In other words, build security walls, build a political fence. And unilaterally separate from the Palestinian entity and the territories, and just deal with the situation as a security issue in the first instance, and just wait to see when the next opportunity may come to start talking again.

Now, that may sound like a good short-term fix. But in my view, building security walls or zones, and buffer zones, a unilateral disengagement or separation by Israel, is just another formula for continued violence. Because the suicide bombers, the terrorism, the violence will continue, in the absence of a political settlement. PHILLIPS: Ambassador Edward Djerejian, thank you so much, sir. Interesting insight.

DJEREJIAN: You're welcome.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com