Barak on Mideast peace: It's up to Arafat

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak tells Christiane Amanpour, right, he is determined to end 'generations of fighting'

UNITED NATIONS (CNN) -- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak says another Mideast peace summit is unlikely to take place soon unless Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat alters his stance.

"There's always a chance, but we're realistic," Barak said Friday in an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour. "There is a need for major effort, especially on behalf of Chairman Arafat, in order to give it the kind of momentum that will make it an accomplishment within a few weeks."

The Israeli leader spoke with Amanpour one day after her interview with Arafat.

Barak and Arafat were both in New York much of the week for the United Nation's Millennium Summi. U.S. President Bill Clinton met with them separately in another attempt to broker a solution to the toughest issue in the Middle East peace issue -- the future of east Jerusalem, which both sides claim.

Barak told Amanpour that while in New York he did not see any change in Arafat's position.

VIDEO Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak speaks with CNN's Christiane Amanpour on peace negotiations with Arafat Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)     MESSAGE BOARD Mideast peace

"But it doesn't mean that the whole thing is closed," he said. "I believe that he felt very clearly that the world as a whole expects him to move, and that somehow the time had come to put an end to the conflict of 100 years between us and the Palestinians, and there would be no better opportunity."

Barak said he is not ready to pay any price for a peace settlement but will offer more than his predecessors.

"I will never give up something which is really essential for us, but I will be ready to contemplate quite far-reaching ideas if they can drive us, after generations of fighting, into a realistic peace in the Middle East," he said.

Israel insists that Jerusalem is its "eternal" capital, but at the Mideast peace summit at Camp David in July, Barak offered the Palestinians local control of some neighborhoods and suburbs. Arafat rejected the overture, insisting on sovereignty over the entire part of the city that Israel won from Jordan in the 1967 war.

CNN's Christiane Amanpour spoke with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on Thursday in New York

Soon after the failure of the Camp David peace conference in July, Arafat traveled the world seeking support for the Palestinian position. Many world leaders outside the Mideast were noncommittal to any option other than resolution through negotiation.

Arafat has often noted his people's willingness to "share Jerusalem" while remaining "committed to our national rights over east Jerusalem," the heavily Arab section of the ancient city that the Palestinians want for their capital.

"I'm not asking for the moon. I'm asking for what has been signed, what has been agreed upon, to be implemented accurately and honestly. Not more or less," Arafat said Thursday night.

Responding to Arafat's claim that the Israeli government has not taken political risks, Barak said, "We're ready to contemplate ideas far reaching beyond anything that any previous Israeli prime minister was ready to contemplate, and I believe that they have heard it even from Chairman Arafat.

"It doesn't mean that we're going to make a peace at any price. We have our own vital interests, and we have to take them into account," Barak said.

Barak said he has not come to the conclusion that the chance for peace has passed. "I hope it is not the conclusion. We should be prepared for both alternatives as responsible leaders, but we should pursue the right way," he said.

CNN.com Writer Jonathan D. Austin contributed to this story.

Clinton pushes Arafat, Barak for an agreement
September 6, 2000
Pressure mounts on Barak, Arafat to reach peace deal as deadline approaches
September 4, 2000
Mideast leaders press for compromise but deadlock persists
August 31, 2000

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