WASHINGTON, May 26, 2005
Bush Pledges $50M To Palestinians
With Abbas At Side, Bush Announces Aid Package For Gaza Strip
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Play CBS Video Video Bush Praises, Gifts Abbas A rare visit by the Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to the White House yielded much talk about the power of the small democracy he leads. David Hawkins reports Bush's $50 million pledge will help.
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Video Pres. Vows Palestinian Support President Bush the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, held a joint press conference at the White House, in which they discussed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
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President Bush and President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas hold a joint press conference in the Rose Garden at the White House. (AP)
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"I don't think they're going to get elected. Palestinian moms want their children to grow up in peace just like American moms want their kids to grow up in peace," he said.
He said he had asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to travel to Jerusalem and Ramallah before the Israeli withdrawal.
Mr. Bush supports the Palestinian goal of a democratic state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with Arab East Jerusalem as its capital.
"When we talk about two states, we are talking about a Palestinian state within the boundaries of 1967. That means those boundaries in our view should go back to the Palestinian poeple," Abbas said in response to a question.
He also reiterated Palestinian objections to a barrier being built by Israel to protect its territory.
"There is no justification for the wall and it is illegitimate and well as settlements — it is illegitimate and we should not allow," Abbas said.
At the same time, Abbas said he remains committed to establish a Palestinian democracy.
"I am saying when we have chosen democracy as a way of life this was not an adventure, this was a determination and a strategy that democracy is the only way to move forward," Abbas said.
"But democracy is like a coin, it has two sides, on the one side is democracy and the other side is freedom. ... Now we lack freedom ... We do not live in freedom in our homeland," he added.
Abbas, the Palestinians' first democratically elected president, is seen by White House officials as a leader they can work with, unlike Arafat. The last time the head of the Palestinian Authority was in the Oval Office was in January 2001, when Arafat saw former President Clinton just days before President Bush took office and closed the White House to Arafat.
©MMV CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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