The Group of Eight (G-8) foreign ministers called on Israel and the Palestinians on Thursday to accept outside monitors to help implement a peace plan amid worries over rising unrest in the region, said reports.
Ending two days of talks before the industrialized countries' summit in Genoa this weekend, the foreign ministers said the Mitchell plan was "the only way forward to break the deadlock, to stop the escalation and to secure the political process," reported Haaretz newspaper.
"We believe that in these circumstances, third party monitoring, accepted by both parties, would serve their interests in implementing the Mitchell report," the ministers said in a separate statement from their final communiqué.
Diplomats described this as a strong sign to both Israelis and Palestinians to end the mounting violence and said that the United States, which earlier described the monitoring idea as premature, was in full agreement with the European proposal, said the paper.
Within the same context, the paper said that the European Union (EU) and the Americans were discussing an initiative to set up a "liaison mechanism" to oversee the ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and the implementation of the Mitchell Committee's report.
The proposal for the mechanism is expected to be raised during the G-8 summit.
The impetus for the liaison mechanism comes from the adamant refusal of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to accept any formula involving an international force, observers or inspectors, which would be deployed in the Occupied Territories, said the paper.
Israel also has reservations on the new proposal, which has yet to be formally introduced.
Palestinians officials, on the other hand, have repeatedly appealed for international observers, so it is unclear why the G8 foreign ministers are treating them as if they were potential obstacles to such a proposal.
Meanwhile, sources at Sharon's office said Wednesday "we are faithful to the understandings reached with the US administration, according to which everything will be determined based on Israel's agreement and there will be no mutual surprises."
According to the same sources the idea of the "liaison mechanism" was not raised in talks with American officials.
The proposed mechanism is meant to function in similar ways as the committee set up to oversee the Grapes of Wrath understandings, following a violent exchange between Israel and the Lebanese Hizbollah in 1996.
Israel and the Palestinians will be able to issue complaints to the overseeing liaison mechanism, which will include an American team, and perhaps even Europeans, over all violations of the ceasefire.
This would enable the two sides to move forward on the diplomatic channel instead of automatically responding to all violations with military means, the paper said.
The liaison mechanism will have a broader mandate from the existing security committee, in which security officials from both sides participate in talks with CIA representatives.
As such, if progress is achieved in the implementation of the Mitchell Report, the liaison mechanism will also be responsible for any violations in the carrying out of the report's recommendations.
The mechanism will also determine the timetable for the implementation of the various stages of the Mitchell plan and declare if and when the cooling-off period and the confidence building measures period will start.
To soften Sharon's stance, it is recommended that decisions will be made by mutual agreement, so leaders of each side could veto all decisions of the liaison committee, the paper added.
Israel and the US will also determine when the seven-day mark, signaling a successful cease-fire period, has been achieved and agree to the start of the implementation of the Mitchell report - Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
