Mitchell: Powell can and will make progress

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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Secretary of State Colin Powell plans to travel Sunday to the Middle East to try to revive negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and to reduce the level of violence between Israelis and Palestinians.

Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, the author of the Mitchell peace plan, discussed the prospects for a peace agreement Sunday on "Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer."

CNN: Do you think there can be a cease-fire between the Israelis and the Palestinians in the short term?

MITCHELL: Yes, I do think that will occur. Obviously, there are many difficulties involved. It's extremely complex and highly emotional. But I think that both societies have come to recognize that there's not going to be a military solution, and the only way to resolve this is through negotiation, and the only way is through negotiation led by the United States.

CNN: A lot of Israelis have lost all confidence in Yasser Arafat. They don't trust him at all. They don't think he can be a true peace partner. On the other side, Palestinians have lost a whole lot of confidence, if they ever had any, in Ariel Sharon. They don't think he's serious about wanting peace.

How do you solve that problem?

MITCHELL: Well, of course, they're both chosen by their people. Every Israeli I've met wishes someone other than Arafat were the leader of the Palestinians, and every Palestinian I've met wishes someone other than Sharon were the leader of the Israelis.

But as President Bush said just two days ago, it's not up to him or any American or any outsider to tell either society who they must choose as their leaders. And I think, as the leaders of those societies, they recognize this.

On my last visit there, which was a few months ago, before the worst of the violence heated up, I was struck by the fact that both Prime Minister Sharon and Chairman Arafat said to me separately, after meetings one day after the other, almost exactly the same words: "Senator, this must end, because life has become unbearable for our people." And it's gotten much more unbearable since then, so I think they both recognize the need for bringing this to an end.

CNN: Is it realistic to assume that Secretary Powell, assuming that he can end the violence in the short term, can get that Mitchell plan, what you came up with, off the ground? And will it require another Camp-David-type summit?

MITCHELL: I think the secretary can do that. I'm not suggesting he do it in one day or one visit. But most of the steps that are set forth in our plan have been widely discussed; the parties understand them.

I think he can and will make progress, in the general direction ... not of getting a final agreement now, but of getting into a process which will bring down the violence and will begin the discussion, in effect the reciprocal steps that our report calls for, leading into meaningful negotiation on the final status issues.

CNN: Do you believe that will require the secretary of state to meet directly with the Palestinian leader?

MITCHELL: That will be up to him. And I expect he'll make the judgment based upon what occurs between now and the time he gets to the region. But if I had to guess, I would guess that he will end up talking with him.