ARAB-US RELATIONS - Nov. 11 - 'Palestine' Enters Washington's Lexicon.

Secretary of State Powell says in an interview with NBC the word "Palestine" has entered the US government's lexicon after the Nov. 10 speech by Pres. Bush to the UN General Assembly. Powell says Bush's use of "Palestine" was deliberate and reflects administration policy, adding: "If one is moving forward with a vision of two states side by side", it's appropriate "to call those two states what they will be - Israel and Palestine". (Before, US officials have referred to the possibility of a "Palestinian state" but never called it "Palestine". Bush told the UN General Assembly on Nov. 10 the US was "working toward the day when two states - Israel and Palestine - live peacefully together within secure and recognized borders as called for by the Security Council resolutions".

Last week, Saudi Arabia told the US administration it was "angrily frustrated" that Washington had failed to begin a promised new peace initiative in the region - see last week's Recorder). In the Nov. 11 speech at the UN, Arafat expresses his "deepest appreciation" for Bush's speech. He says the Bush statement is "a significant step in the path of ending the conflict and the establishment of peace in the Middle East".

(Until Nov. 10, Washington used "Palestine" only to describe the British-controlled territory that existed before Israel's establishment in 1948. Israel assumed some of the territory; the other parts were controlled by Jordan and Egypt until they were captured by Israel in 1967. Although Israel has accepted the existence of a Palestinian state as an outcome of peace talks, calling it "Palestine" has been a sensitive issue. It has raised concerns that it would imply a Palestinian presumption to all the pre-1948 territory, including Israel. PM Sharon spokesman Raanan Gissin said: "The only objection we would have to the use of the term 'Palestine' would be where it is meant as an alternative to Israel, in order to undermine the legitimacy of the Jewish state". Sharon has suggested an interim recognition of Palestinian statehood without recognised borders. Israel understands UN resolutions as calling for an exchange of territory for peace, but not necessarily leading to statehood. Before the Sept. 11 attacks, the US administration's approach to the yearlong increase in Israeli-Palestinian violence was notable for its lack of involvement. Bush said that he thought the Clinton administration had been too involved in the region, disappointing some Arabs who had hoped that Bush would balance what they perceived as Clinton's pro-Israel tilt. The shift since Sept. 11 has unnerved Israel, and Sharon last month wondered whether the US was sacrificing Israel's security interests to building an anti-terror coalition. US officials stressed they were still toeing a tough line with Arafat, with US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice saying Bush still would not meet Arafat, although both were in New York on Nov. 11. Bush's refusal to meet Arafat has shocked Arab commentators, who said the Israeli-Palestinian conflict urgently needed a heavy dose of US mediation, especially when Washington was trying to win Arab support for its campaign against the Taliban and Al Qaida in Afghanistan).