[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 146 (Saturday, October 8, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 8, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
  UNITED STATES AND NATIONS OF MIDDLE EAST SHOULD CONTINUE TO GROW IN 
                             UNDERSTANDING

                                 ______


                           HON. CHARLIE ROSE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 7, 1994

  Mr. ROSE. Mr. Speaker, the last 2 years have provided remarkable 
progress toward a lasting peace in the Middle East. New diplomatic 
avenues are regularly presenting opportunities for the nations of the 
region to put aside longstanding differences and make plans for a 
mutually beneficial lasting peace. Natural resource sharing, common 
agricultural needs, and the native entrepreneurial spirit of the region 
are finally having a chance to take hold over political and military 
advantage. The parties involved in these new beginnings should be 
praised as peacekeepers, and the U.S. role in encouraging these changes 
should be escalated.
  The recent opening to Syria has been long in coming. The fact that 
Israeli and Syrian Government officials are conducting meaningful 
dialog is an indication of the positive direction of talks in the 
region. The United States should continue to look for opportunities in 
the Middle East to bring people together, and highlight those items 
that connect our peoples on human as well as governmental levels. 
Recently, I became aware of the artistic talents of Mrs. Lawsan Khayat 
Al-Moualem, wife of H.E. Walid Al-Moualem, the Syrian Ambassador to the 
United States. The recent exhibit of her works continues to illustrate 
the fact that art, like music and dance, crosses national boundaries in 
appeal as easily as art crosses generational barriers. Art appreciation 
is one human endeavor that does not discriminate against race, creed, 
color, or national origin. It is one of those intangible human 
enterprises that joins rather than divides the world's people.
  To quote an inscription on the wall of the John F. Kennedy Center for 
Performing Arts,

       To further the appreciation of culture among all the 
     people, to increase respect for the creative individual, to 
     widen the participation by all the processes and fulfillments 
     of art--this is one of the fascinating challenges of these 
     days.

  Let the United States and the nations of the Middle East continue to 
bridge the interests of the region and let us continue to highlight 
those activities that make us understand each other more clearly.

                          ____________________