Peace conferences like the recent one in Annapolis, Md., were important, [said Special Envoy Tony Blair,] “but these conferences must translate into progress on the ground.” … It is vital “to align the facts on the ground, the reality, with the politics” in order to strengthen the two leaders, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, Mr. Blair said in an interview here. “What will empower Olmert is genuine Palestinian progress on security, and what will empower Abbas is genuine Israeli help, consistent with that security progress, on lifting restrictions and the burden of occupation.” …
Next Monday in Paris, [Blair] will be a co-chairman of the first meeting in years of donor countries. It is expected that the participants will pledge aid to Mr. Abbas and his prime minister, Salam Fayyad, an economist who has prepared a 36-page plan of economic, institutional and security reform.
The three-year plan, called “Building a Palestinian State,” is explicit about Palestinian responsibility for some aspects of the calamitous state of the economy… Guided in part by Mr. Blair, the plan, which was provided by Palestinians to The New York Times, says that “we are now absolutely determined to rebuild the trust of our citizens and our international partners,” including “bringing the rule of law to the occupied territory and combating violence.” Access the full article>>
