Palestinian State Opposed, Baker Says : He Seeks to Reassure Israel After U.S. Statement on PLO Talks

Secretary of State James A. Baker III, attempting to soften the impact of his conclusion that Israel eventually may have to negotiate directly with the Palestine Liberation Organization, Tuesday reaffirmed the Bush Administration’s opposition to the creation of an independent Palestinian state.

“It is the policy of the United States that we do not support an independent Palestinian state,” Baker told a House panel. His statement was intended to reassure Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, who has vowed that his government will never relinquish control over the West Bank and Gaza Strip territories that Israel occupied during the Arab-Israeli war of 1967.

However, in response to often hard-edged questions posed by some of Israel’s most outspoken Capitol Hill allies, Baker also defended his view that Israel has failed to find any Palestinians outside the PLO who are willing to join in peace talks, thus leaving the Israelis with little choice but to negotiate with Yasser Arafat’s organization.

Baker’s testimony to a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee marked an acceleration of the pace of the Administration’s Middle East diplomacy. The White House announced Tuesday that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will visit Washington on April 3, Shamir will come to the United States on April 6 and Jordan’s King Hussein will follow on May 2.

Robert H. Pelletreau Jr., U.S. ambassador to Tunisia, meets today in Tunis with PLO representatives as part of the new U.S.-PLO dialogue.

Although Baker told the subcommittee that U.S. support for Israel’s security is unwavering, he said the Bush Administration does not see eye-to-eye with Shamir’s government concerning how to restart the stalled Middle East peace process.

“The United States has some differences with our staunch ally, Israel,” Baker said. “For instance, we believe in land for peace as a solution to the problems in the Middle East.”

Israel returned all of the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt as part of their 1979 peace treaty. But Shamir has long insisted that Israel should not be expected to yield the West Bank and Gaza Strip in a similar land-for-peace swap, maintaining that Israel will offer only peace for peace.

Baker did not attempt to reconcile his support of the land-for-peace formula with his opposition to an independent Palestinian state. Before the 1967 war, Jordan controlled the West Bank and Egypt controlled the Gaza Strip, but each government has said that it will not accept return of its territory, arguing that it should be part of a Palestinian state.

For its part, the PLO has said it is ready to enter peace talks with Israel but only if the talks afford the chance of producing an independent Palestinian state.

Baker said last week that the United States supports direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. Washington would prefer that the Palestinians have no connection with the PLO, he said, but if prominent Palestinians continue to refuse to participate, Israel might have to turn to the PLO.

The Shamir government supports Israeli-Palestinian negotiations but only with Palestinians who are not members of the PLO. Although Arafat has publicly renounced terrorism and acknowledged the existence of Israel, Shamir says the PLO is still a terrorist organization.

Baker’s remarks last week were interpreted both by the Israeli government and by the PLO as a major change in U.S. attitudes.

Rep. Larry Smith (D-Fla.), an unwavering supporter of the Israeli government, told Baker that “the impact (of Baker’s comments last week) seems to be a lot different than perhaps was intended.” He said Baker’s remarks have made it much more difficult for Israel to find non-PLO Palestinians who are able and willing to negotiate.

But Baker refused to retreat.

“Efforts to negotiate with Palestinians in the occupied territories have not met with much success, regrettably,” Baker said. “The fact of the matter is, the situation there, over the past number of years, has not improved. It has, indeed, deteriorated.”

Under such circumstances, Baker said, “it would be wrong for us to categorically, absolutely, totally and completely rule out, under any and all circumstances, any dialogue that might lead us toward peace.”

In response to questions from California Rep. Howard L. Berman (D-Panorama City), Baker said the PLO should amend its Palestine National Covenant to eliminate language calling for the destruction of Israel.

Times staff writer Doyle McManus contributed to this story.

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