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CNN Sunday Morning

Arafat Expected to Announce Changes in Palestinian Power Structure

Aired June 09, 2002 - 09:01   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: We begin this morning in the Middle East, where Yasser Arafat is expected to talk about changes to the Palestinian power structure. With more now, CNN's Matthew Chance, he joins us from Ramallah -- Matthew.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Kyra, and the Palestinian Authority leader Yasser Arafat has been coming under a great deal of pressure to reform his Palestinian Authority. We are now expecting, within the next hours, the next hour rather, the first of the latest rather of those reforms to be announced by the Palestinian leadership.

Israel for its part has made reform of the Palestinian Authority a condition for resuming peace talks with the Palestinians. They say they want the more transparent Palestinian Authority, more accountable one, so they can see where the resources of that authority are being deployed.

They also want radical change in the way in which the Palestinian security forces are run. There are at the moment up to 12 Palestinian security organizations. They want that whittled down to a much lesser number, a much more streamlined, a much more accountable system.

Palestinians themselves also for many years now have been calling for reform internally within the Palestinian Authority to tackle the corruption and inefficiency, as they see it, as the way Palestinian money, aid to nations have been deployed across the Palestinian territories. But of course, their concern is that the Palestinian Authority becomes more democratic, not simply that it becomes more able to satisfy the interests of Israel, to a lesser extent the United States.

Now the indications that we're receiving from within the Palestinian Authority at this stage is that the reforms that are likely to be announced today will not be that far reaching. We're talking about a number of ministers being shuffled. The amount of ministries of the Palestinian Authority being reduced from the number of 29 down to about 21.

Interestingly, there will be an interior minister position created, a position which will have overall responsibility for overseeing the security aspects of running the Palestinian Authority, so at least that will give everyone someone to focus on when they're calling on the Palestinian Authority to crack down harder on militant groups.

Now, whether this will be enough to satisfy the Israelis or the United States or indeed the Palestinians is still unclear, but Palestinian officials here, Kyra, tell us that this is just the start of a much longer process of reform that they are undertaking. Back to you.

PHILLIPS: Matthew Chance, live from Ramallah, thank you.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is reiterating that he won't sit down for talks with the Palestinians until the violence stops. This comes a day before talks between Sharon and President Bush in Washington. CNN's Kelly Wallace is standing by live at the White House. Kelly, Matthew Chance is talking about this pressure that Arafat is under. Well, Bush also under pressure from Arab leaders to push for a Palestinian state.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Definitely, Kyra, pressures are coming from the Arab leaders to get a timetable in place for the creation of a Palestinian state and now pressure, as you just noted, coming from the Israelis who will say that no, they will not have any timeline for negotiations or the creation of such a state until the violence comes to an end.

Now we know that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon asked for this meeting with President Bush. Clearly, Mr. Sharon wanting to talk to the U.S. leader after Mr. Bush has met with other Arab leaders. You see Ariel Sharon arriving at Andrews Air Force Base early this morning. He will be here at the White House tomorrow, for what will be his sixth face-to-face meeting with Mr. Bush.

But even before that meeting is getting under way, the Israeli leader is making his feelings very well known. In an op-ed in today's "New York Times," he writes: "Israel must defeat terrorism. It can not negotiate under fire. Israel has made painful concessions for peace again, but it requires first and foremost a reliable partner for peace."

The Israelis want to see reform to the Palestinian Authority and the violence to come to an end. Mr. Bush heard a clearly different point of view yesterday. You see Mr. Bush with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, walking in the woods at the presidential retreat at Camp David.

The Egyptian leader pressing Mr. Bush to set a timeline for the creation of a Palestinian state, saying that's the only way to bring the violence to an end, to give hope to the Palestinian people, that Mr. Bush making it very clear that he is not ready to commit to such a timeline for negotiations or the creation of a Palestinian state.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Part of the consultation process that we are having is to determine what's feasible in terms of that political dialogue, what's feasible in terms of the timetable that a lot of people are anxious to talk about. We're not ready to lay down any specific calendar, except for the fact we need to get started quickly, soon, so that we can seize the moment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: And Mr. Bush said the immediate priority right now should be building the institutions within the Palestinian Authority to pave the way for a state. He and the Egyptian leader also making it clear they have some differences when it comes to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

Mr. Mubarak said look, we should give this man a chance. Mr. Bush made it clear he is disappointed in Yasser Arafat, and also, Kyra, indicated this administration believes there is other, quote, "talent" within the Palestinian Authority.

U.S. officials have certainly been reaching out to other moderate leaders, hoping they'll pave the way for reforms within the Palestinian Authority -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, Kelly, these meetings between Bush and Sharon, how successful can they really be when Bush even himself is not quite clear on his policy?

WALLACE: Well, this is all what White House aides like to call more listening sessions. No question there are a lot of competing pressures for this president to maneuver through, even just the question of Yasser Arafat. Mr. Sharon will not negotiate with Yasser Arafat. Arab leaders want the president and the Israelis to continue working with him.

The message we're getting is after tomorrow's meeting, sometime soon after that, the president is going to go forward, he said in some way to communicate to the country his plan to move forward. We are told he is not ruling out the possibility of at some point committing to a timeline for negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Clearly, he feels the pressure, Kyra, to come forward with a plan. The question is, what will it be? Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Kelly Wallace live from the White House, thank you.

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