(Washington, DC) - U.S. Representatives Gary Ackerman (D-NY), the Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia, and Charles W. Boustany, Jr., (R-LA), are this afternoon sending a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to express Congressional support for the Bush Administration's efforts to convene an international meeting in Annapolis, Maryland about the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, and to urge a number of practical steps to bolster the prospects for its success.

The letter, co-authored by Ackerman, a Jewish-American and Boustany, an Arab-American, was signed by 135 Members of Congress. It encourages the Secretary to implement significant changes in the way the United States provides project-based assistance to the Palestinian Authority. It also emphasizes the need for the international community to work more collaboratively on helping to build up the governing capacity of the Palestinian Authority. The full text of the correspondence and the signatories can be viewed below.

“The stakes for the upcoming meeting in Annapolis are extremely high and we believe that dialogue and discussion will not, by themselves, be enough to facilitate a successful outcome” said Ackerman. “Therefore, we believe that the steps suggested in our letter are needed to demonstrate America's commitment to Israeli-Palestinian peace, to create a better climate for peacemaking, and most importantly, to help put some authority into the Palestinian Authority, so that it can be a capable partner for peace.”

“The U.S. should take a hands-on approach to create the environment needed for peace and stability,” Boustany said. “Capacity building projects to strengthen the Palestinian Authority’s legitimacy and governance are necessary to ultimately increasing the chances for productive and fruitful peace talks. This opportunity must not pass – the cost of failure and inaction is far too high.”

“The leadership of Chairman Ackerman, together with Congressman Boustany, has been invaluable for the national security interest of the United States and Israel” said Americans For Peace Now. “The policies advocated in the Ackerman-Boustany letter would provide Israel with the greater security – security through peace – that the people of Israel so richly deserve.” 

"We applaud Representatives Ackerman and Boustany for their impressive initiative which has mobilized widespread support in Congress for the upcoming Annapolis peace conference” said Steven Masters, President of Brit Tzedek v'Shalom. “Their letter to Secretary Rice expresses the sentiments of the overwhelming majority of American Jews who strongly support U.S. backed initiatives aimed at reaching a negotiated, two-state resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel's long-term peace and security require that this conference succeed and the support of the U.S. Congress is a critical factor for ensuring the success over the long haul of this vital peace process."
 
"Success in the aftermath of the Annapolis summit is critical, not just for Palestinians and Israelis, but for the United States and the entire Middle East region," said Arab American Institute President James Zogby. "That is why it is so encouraging that Congress, under the leadership of Representatives Ackerman and Boustany, has taken such a constructive approach in support of peacemaking. They recognize the importance of U.S. aid, diplomacy and, when necessary, pressure in moving this vital process forward." 

“We applaud Congressmen Ackerman and Boustany for the significant part they played in developing this letter and for their articulation of the importance of seizing the opportunities that have emerged over the past weeks,” declared Seymour D. Reich, president of the Israel Policy Forum (IPF). “Its signer’s extraordinary diversity and high profile demonstrate important, bi-partisan and broad Congressional backing for active American engagement in resolving the conflict between Israel and her neighbors, as well as for Secretary Rice’s activities surrounding the conference and follow-up.” 

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Signatories of the letter, comprised of Democrats and Republicans, include: Representatives Ackerman, Boustany, Lantos, Alcee Hastings, Crowley, Rahall, James Moran, Ellison, McCollum, Capps, Blumenauer, Jackson, Honda, Frank, Doyle, Schiff, McGovern, Coble, Faleomavaega, Sestak, McNulty, Baird, David Price, Lee, Wynn, Farr, Melancon, Boswell, Cardoza, Costa, Boyd, Kaptur, Baldwin, Hodes, Holt, Doggett, Delahunt, Carnahan, Geoff Davis, Maloney, Schakowsky, Woolsey, Altmire, Hill, Fortenberry, Mike Thompson, Kucinich, Jackson-Lee, Gonzalez, Waxman, Van Hollen, Issa, Markey, Lahood, Pascrell, Conaway, Velazquez, Meeks, Olver, Alexander, McDermott, Chris Smith, Capuano, DeLauro, Dingell, Fattah, Conyers, Norton, Larson, Baker, Putnam, Jefferson, Stark, Kuhl, Susan Davis, Carney, Christopher Murphy, McNerney, Neal, Langevin, Gwen Moore, Sanford Bishop, Dennis Moore, Braley, Cohen, Larsen, Kennedy, Berman, Matheson, Rangel, Brad Miller, Adam Smith, Lynch, Bonner, Kildee, Hinojosa, Gilchrest, Wasserman Shultz, Sires, John Lewis, George Miller, Grijalva, Norm Dicks, Filner, David Scott, Scott Garrett, Pastor, Gillibrand, Tierney, Sarbanes, Arcuri, Diane Watson, Welch, LoBiondo, Carolyn McCarthy, Higgins, Julia Carson, Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, Corrine Brown, T. Allen, Payne, Michael Michaud, Hank Johnson, Inslee, Rodriguez, Tsongas, Solis, Courtney, Loebsack, Bordallo, Ferguson, Stephanie Tubbs Jones, Sutton, Hall, Gutierrez.

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Text of letter:

November 19, 2007

The Honorable Condoleezza Rice
Secretary
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC

Dear Madam Secretary:

We are writing to both commend you for your efforts to reinvigorate the Israeli-Palestinian peace process by convening an international meeting this fall and to respectfully suggest that additional measures by the United States in the near term will be necessary to preserve the possibility of success.

As do you, we believe the coming months represent a critical opportunity to stabilize the region by advancing a peace agreement between Israelis and Palestinians -- and perhaps a comprehensive opening of Israeli relations with the Arab world. However, it is equally clear that a still-born initiative could set back prospects for peace, destabilize regional allies, and exacerbate an already volatile situation in the Middle East

Clearly, robust, hands-on U.S. leadership and diplomacy is necessary to frame not only on what transpires at the meeting, but on what takes place before and after it. But dialogue and encouragement of the parties will not, by themselves, be sufficient. As you have made clear, the Palestinian Authority, led by President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, has emerged as a viable partner for U.S. peace efforts. The situation confronting them, however, is desperate.

Accordingly, we urge you to consider a reorientation of U.S. project-focused assistance programs. The immediate needs of the Palestinian people are for clean government, public order, economic opportunity, and salaried employment. U.S. assistance should be used—and should be designed to leverage international support—for financial and personnel reforms in the Palestinian Authority, for housing or other labor intensive projects, for the effective operation of a Palestinian police force and an independent Palestinian judiciary, and for long-term economic development and job creation programs. Addressing corruption and public safety in the P.A. while continuing to engage with Israel to coordinate a remittance schedule for Palestinian tax monies and to improve access and movement will ensure that assistance will be effective in reviving the Palestinian economy and creating the atmosphere of hope required for the success of diplomatic efforts.

In this regard, we recognize that in this critical moment, and with the current Palestinian leadership, current levels of U.S. assistance are insufficient to leverage either real change and improvement by the Palestinian Authority, or more robust support by the international community. The United States should take the lead in organizing international assistance to the Palestinian Authority which is not only consistent with the principles described above, but would suffice to cover the legitimate budgetary needs of the Palestinian Authority until it is able to muster its own resources.

U.S. assistance, though of vital importance, must be supported by a regional consensus. The current oil boom, aggressive Iranian efforts to establish hegemony and the extra-legal takeover of the Gaza Strip by Hamas, all lend salience to your efforts to positively engage the Arab states in efforts to make peace. In concert with others, we can not allow the financial asphyxiation of the Palestinian Authority, particularly while some continue to provide or allow funding of Hamas.  The extraordinary efforts being made by the President and yourself are more likely to succeed if our regional partners are working together with us.

Madam Secretary, resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, through the establishment of two states for two peoples, is too important not to seize the opportunities that have emerged over the past weeks. With aggressive multilateral diplomacy led by the United States, we believe the meeting in November could mark an important turning point. We look forward to working with you to ensure that it is a success.

Sincerely,

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