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US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wants the creation of a separate, independent state to solve an old conflict (file photo)JERUSALEM (Tiraspol Times, wires) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on 17 February that this is an ‘important time’ to advance the idea of a Palestinian state alongside Israel. Ms Rice spoke at the start of a meeting with Israel's Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, and two days before a three-day summit with the Israeli and Palestinian leaders.
A separate sovereign state is the best way to put an end to a long-running territorial conflict, and do so in a way that avoids renewed violence.
" - It only makes sense," she said, "that you have to renounce violence, it only makes sense that you have to recognize the right of your partner to exist and respect international agreements. And those principles remain, and they are the foundational principles for the formation of two states, and in fact for the formation of leadership that can lead to that two-state solution."
Earlier, Ehud Olmert announced that he would be willing, under conditions of peace, to start talks aimed at creating “an independent and viable Palestinian state with full sovereignty and defined borders,” and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice repeated those words during her one-day visit to Israel on 30 November 2006.
As reported this weekend, conflict resolution specialists see the comments of Ms Rice as holding potential for breakthroughs in regards to not just Palestine, but other disputed territories as well. This includes the "frozen conflicts" on the post-Soviet space such as the territorial dispute between Pridnestrovie and Moldova.
- Condoleezza Rice: Time for Palestinian state
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will broker talks in Jerusalem between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during a 19 February summit which is designed to jumpstart negotiations toward the creation of a separate, independent Palestinian state alongside Israel. The creation of a separate, sovereign Palestine with full United Nations membership is a goal of the Bush administration. Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz writes that the work of Condoleezza Rice is geared towards the coexistence of two independent, sovereign states.
As Rice seeks to restart effort toward Palestinian statehood, she told both sides that it is an important time to advance the vision of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.
No such message has yet been sent to Moldova which is now in its seventeenth year of maintaining a stalled territorial claim which is dubious under international law and which it has been unable to ever enforce. It refuses to recognize the sovereignty of Pridnestrovie (also called Transnistria or Transdniester) which declared independence in 1990 during the breakup of the Soviet Union and has never at any time in history been part of a Moldovan state.
On 17 September the voters of Pridnestrovie went to the polls in a refendum which affirming their wish for independence. More than 94% rejected unification with Moldova in the poll which counted with a turnout of nearly 80%. The referendum was declared free and fair by 130 international observers, but was not recognized by the West or by international organizations, and is not binding on Moldova.
Pridnestrovie has been 'de facto' independent for nearly seventeen years. It governs its own affairs without any interference from Moldova. The unrecognized country meets the requirements for statehood under international law. It has a defined territory, a permanent population, and a tolerant, multiethnic and democratically elected government.
See also:
» US Defense chief hails self-determination and
"the right to choose their own destiny" [1]
» Moldovan-born politician on conflict settlement:
"Separating the two sides is best solution" [2]
» US intelligence briefing predicts future PMR statehood as "likely" [3]