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CNN Live At Daybreak
White House Planning Three-Way Middle East Peace Summit
Aired May 23, 2003 - 06:32 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: This comes on a day when we've been talking a lot about that road map to peace. We have word this morning that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will endorse it. As for any changes that will come, we only know for sure that the Palestinians say they don't want any.
We do know the White House is working hard to arrange a meeting between Sharon and the Palestinian prime minister, Mahmoud Abbas, and President Bush.
Let's go live to the White House now and senior White House correspondent John King.
Good morning -- John.
JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.
This violence this morning, this bombing, is something the White House will watch very closely. But CNN is told that later this morning, within perhaps the next 90 minutes or so, the White House will announce that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has given his broad endorsement to the administration's Middle East peace road map.
Now, Prime Minister Sharon has some reservations. He wants to change some things. But we are told he has agreed to give his broad endorsement to the plan. That has been key to the Palestinian prime minister, Mahmoud Abbas, who says, to tell Hamas, to tell other militant groups, they must stop the violence. He has to be able to show to them that Prime Minister Sharon is committed to at least starting a peace process, the goal of which, of course, is an independent Palestinian state by the end of 2005.
Now, in this announcement we are told will come from the White House this morning, Mr. Bush will say that Prime Minister Sharon has given his broad endorsement to the road map, and therefore he will arrange a three-way summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. That is a resort town in Egypt that has been the host city for previous major Middle East meetings. President Bush, Prime Minister Sharon and Prime Minister Abbas of the Palestinian Authority due to meet in the first week of June in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt to try to move this process forward.
The one reservation, the White House says, is that there must be a period of relative calm on the ground. Now, a bus bombing this morning would not be enough to disrupt the process, but the White House says both leaders -- Mr. Abbas and Mr. Sharon -- have given their word to the White House they will do all they can to keep relative calm in the region. The White House says, of course, the bigger burden is on the Palestinian leader to keep Palestinian militants from trying to essentially bomb the peace process out of existence -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Understand. John King reporting live from the White House this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired May 23, 2003 - 06:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: This comes on a day when we've been talking a lot about that road map to peace. We have word this morning that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will endorse it. As for any changes that will come, we only know for sure that the Palestinians say they don't want any.
We do know the White House is working hard to arrange a meeting between Sharon and the Palestinian prime minister, Mahmoud Abbas, and President Bush.
Let's go live to the White House now and senior White House correspondent John King.
Good morning -- John.
JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.
This violence this morning, this bombing, is something the White House will watch very closely. But CNN is told that later this morning, within perhaps the next 90 minutes or so, the White House will announce that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has given his broad endorsement to the administration's Middle East peace road map.
Now, Prime Minister Sharon has some reservations. He wants to change some things. But we are told he has agreed to give his broad endorsement to the plan. That has been key to the Palestinian prime minister, Mahmoud Abbas, who says, to tell Hamas, to tell other militant groups, they must stop the violence. He has to be able to show to them that Prime Minister Sharon is committed to at least starting a peace process, the goal of which, of course, is an independent Palestinian state by the end of 2005.
Now, in this announcement we are told will come from the White House this morning, Mr. Bush will say that Prime Minister Sharon has given his broad endorsement to the road map, and therefore he will arrange a three-way summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. That is a resort town in Egypt that has been the host city for previous major Middle East meetings. President Bush, Prime Minister Sharon and Prime Minister Abbas of the Palestinian Authority due to meet in the first week of June in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt to try to move this process forward.
The one reservation, the White House says, is that there must be a period of relative calm on the ground. Now, a bus bombing this morning would not be enough to disrupt the process, but the White House says both leaders -- Mr. Abbas and Mr. Sharon -- have given their word to the White House they will do all they can to keep relative calm in the region. The White House says, of course, the bigger burden is on the Palestinian leader to keep Palestinian militants from trying to essentially bomb the peace process out of existence -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Understand. John King reporting live from the White House this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
