U.S. and Arab Negotiators Give Some to Get Some

It was almost an all-nighter. Well after midnight Tuesday morning, Saudi Arabia’s elegantly robed foreign minister, Prince Saud al Faisal, called on U.S. Secretary of State Colin L. Powell at this palm-fringed Red Sea resort to thrash out final details for President Bush’s first summit with Arab leaders. They didn’t finish until 3:30 a.m.

“It was quite a long discussion,” a senior U.S. official acknowledged.

There were moments of tension when Powell pressed the Arabs to take gradual steps to establish direct contacts with Israel -- before a final peace. The Saudis balked, according to Arab accounts.

The wording, which the United States had wanted as leverage to convince Israel during talks today in Jordan that Arabs are willing to take practical steps to implement the new “road map” for peace, was eventually dropped from the summit communique.

“There were difficult moments, but they were never dramatic, never a crisis,” an Egyptian participant in the summit said. “Although there were differences of views, we agreed on the goal.”

In the end, the United States got a good bit of what it wanted from Arab leaders at the summit. And the Arabs got much of what they sought from the United States.

The Arab players -- the Palestinians, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, the latter representing the rotating Arab League presidency -- wanted to be convinced that President Bush will follow through with the road map.

The long-standing Arab fear has been that the first obstacle that comes up, be it an Israeli objection or U.S. domestic political pressures when the Bush reelection campaign begins, would derail yet another blueprint for peace.

But the talks “responded to many of the questions in the Arab world about the seriousness and intention of President Bush in pursuing a peace initiative,” a high-ranking Saudi participant said.

“It’s dangerous to raise expectations that everything is solved. But if asked, I’m much more confident than I was yesterday,” he added.

On a scale of 1 to 100, “I think it’s 100,” the Egyptian participant said. “The commitment by the president to use the full weight of his office to make both parties act on the basis of a two-state solution was impressive.”

Palestinian Foreign Minister Nabil Shaath said he was pleased that Bush had abandoned his “wait-and-see position” of the last two years and shown increasing involvement with the Palestinian issue. Shaath said Bush told the Arabs, “I’m not a man who will take failure.”

The success was based in part, however, on what key issues were avoided or dropped -- such as the wording on Arabs’ steps toward contacts with Israel.

The United States did win support on three broad principles, albeit with caveats, that the Bush administration says will create a foundation for further movement.

The pivotal Arab players formally embraced the road map, designed by the U.S., United Nations, European Union and Russia. The Arabs announced a “common commitment to seize this historic moment.”

The caveat is that they do not want any changes -- and Israel already has submitted a dozen “reservations” that the United States has promised to address.

There is “an Arab consensus on the road map, without amendments. We want full implementation of the road map,” Egyptian spokesman Nabil Osman said.

The Arabs also pledged to fight terrorism and, more important, the “culture of extremism and violence in any form or shape, from whatever source or place -- regardless of justifications or motives.”

Although the Arabs have -- individually and together -- condemned terrorism before, they usually have differentiated between terrorism and the Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation. Disregarding any “justifications or motives” is a significant step forward, U.S. officials say.

That wording sends a signal that the governments accounting for a significant portion of the world’s Arab population may no longer make that distinction and will take actions to limit Arab aid to extremists.

To ensure that Saudi funds do not get into the hands of extremist groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad, the Saudis promised the U.S. it will channel all contributions through a single government-monitored charity.

The three attacks in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, last month played a role in the tougher wording, Saudis said.

“The bombings had the same effect on us as the Sept. 11 attacks had on you,” said a Saudi analyst in Egypt for the U.S.-Arab summit.

The summit also ensured that the Arabs now officially recognize new Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, and not President Yasser Arafat, as the primary politician on the peace process and for Arab aid.

Against a backdrop of the Red Sea, Abbas stood conspicuously alongside powerful Arab leaders as Bush and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak read the final statements from the summit. The endorsement will strengthen Abbas’ hand in consolidating his fragile hold on the Palestinian Authority, U.S. officials say.

Many Arabs have long disliked or been suspicious of Arafat but have supported him as the father of Palestinian nationalism and because of Arab claims on Jerusalem.

So, many now welcome alternative leadership, even though Arafat’s popularity among Palestinians makes it difficult to abandon him completely, Arabs say.

“If there is a final peace, his endorsement would be helpful,” the Egyptian participant said.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Shaath charged that U.S. attempts to marginalize Arafat were “unfair [and] unhelpful and are undermining Abu Mazen’s authority when he comes here and the president is in jail,” a reference to the fact that Arafat is unable to leave his West Bank headquarters.

Bush gave a warm welcome to the new prime minister, who assumed office five weeks ago after Washington pressured the Palestinians to select a new leader.

Bush now moves to the second of the two Middle East summits, in Aqaba, Jordan’s Red Sea port, to hold talks with the Palestinian leader and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

The Arabs expect Bush to follow through at what may be the more difficult of the summits, at which the president will try to convert acceptance of the road map into action.

“Jordan will be a test of Mr. Bush’s resolve,” Shaath said. “Having come as the gladiator with laurels in Iraq and Afghanistan, he is armed with spectacular successes and he should be able to persuade Sharon.”

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Times staff writer Solomon Moore contributed to this report.