[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 146 (Tuesday, September 19, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13872-S13874]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      SIGNING OF THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN DECLARATION OF PRINCIPLES

  Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Foreign 
Relations Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 
171, relating to the signing of the Israeli-Palestinian declaration of 
principles, and that the Senate then proceed to its immediate 
consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Senate proceeded to consider the resolution.
  
[[Page S13873]]

  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, 2 years and 6 days ago, on September 
13, 1993, my colleagues and I were privileged to witness an historic 
moment on the White House lawn: the signing of the Israeli-Palestinian 
Declaration of Principles.
  Last week, on behalf of myself, Senator Brown, Senator Lieberman, and 
Senator Pell I submitted S. Res. 171, a resolution expressing the sense 
of the Senate on this important anniversary.
  Today, I am pleased to welcome this resolution's adoption by the full 
Senate. This is an important demonstration of the Senate's continued 
support for the Middle East peace process, and a note of encouragement 
to those working to bring it to a successful conclusion.
  From time to time, it is worth taking a moment to recognize the 
remarkable progress that has been achieved in the Middle East in such a 
short time. The Middle East has changed so much in the last 4 years 
that we often take the changes for granted. But reviewing the changes 
makes us realize that we are witnessing a true transformation in the 
region.
  Think of it:
  Four years ago, before the Madrid Conference in October 1991, Israel 
had never sat face-to-face in peace talks with most of its Arab 
neighbors. Today, meetings between Israeli and Arab officials--from 
Israel's immediate neighbors, from the Persian Gulf States, and from 
North Africa--are so routine and so numerous that they scarcely receive 
mention in the news media.
  Just over 2 years ago, Israeli and Palestinian negotiators remained 
locked in a fruitless stalemate, and direct talks between Israel and 
the PLO were deemed impossible. Today, there is Palestinian self-rule 
in Gaza and Jericho, Israel and the Palestinian Authority are on the 
verge of reaching an agreement on Palestinian elections and further 
Israeli troop redeployments in the West Bank, and handshakes between 
Israeli and PLO leaders are commonplace.
  Just over 1 year ago, Israel and Jordan remained officially in a 
state of war. Today, thanks to the courage and leadership of King 
Hussein and Prime Minister Rabin, Israel and Jordan have signed a full 
peace treaty, enjoy full diplomatic relations, and are continually 
expanding their cooperation in security, economic development, tourism, 
the environment, and many other areas.
  Mr. President, no one would deny that peace has not yet been secured 
in the Middle East. Much, much work remains to be done. Although the 
Israeli-Syrian negotiations have at times showed promise, with senior 
Israeli and Syrian military officers holding substantive talks on the 
security arrangements that must accompany an agreement, these talks 
currently seem caught in a stalemate. Clearly, many hard rounds of 
negotiations remain.
  Israel's talks with Lebanon are essentially on hold until there is an 
Israeli-Syrian deal. Israel and the Palestinians must continue to 
overcome obstacles to the implementation of their agreements, and their 
negotiations will get no easier once final status talks begin next 
year.
  In addition, the peacemakers of the Middle East face continual 
opposition from those who would use terrorism to upset the peace 
process. We were reminded of this once again on August 21 when a 
suicide bomber blew up a bus in Jerusalem, killing five Israeli 
civilians. Like the suicide bombings that preceded it, this was a 
heinous and unforgivable act of terrorism.
  All who are committed to peace must do everything in their power to 
prevent acts of terrorism. Nowhere is this more true than in the areas 
controlled by the Palestinian Authority. While the performance of 
Chairman Arafat's Authority in security matters has improved with time, 
it must do even more to prevent and punish all terrorist acts. Suicide 
bombers and other extremists must not be allowed to succeed in their 
goal preventing the arrival of peace.
  But, the obstacles and the hard work ahead do not change the fact 
that real peace in the Middle East is today genuinely within reach, as 
it never has been before. The long-held dream of Israelis to live in 
peace with all their neighbors, in secure borders, is now a real 
possibility.
  To bring this process to a successful conclusion, the parties 
themselves must make all the difficult decisions. But the support of 
the United States has always been essential to Middle East peacemaking, 
and it remains so today.
  Presidents Bush and Clinton, and Secretaries of State Baker and 
Christopher, deserve enormous credit for their unyielding commitment to 
pursuing a comprehensive peace in the Middle East, and their efforts 
have earned them the respect and gratitude of parties throughout the 
region.
  The Congress has also been consistent in its strong support of all 
efforts to advance the peace process, and expressions of that support 
help bolster the parties in their efforts. One recent expression of 
that support was the introduction of S. 1064, the Middle East Peace 
Facilitation Act of 1995, which I was proud to cosponsor along with 
Senators Helms, Pell, Dole, Daschle, Mack, Lieberman, McConnell, Leahy, 
and Lautenberg. This bill would allow the President to continue to 
provide assistance to the Palestinians and to conduct relations with 
the PLO, but it includes strict new language mandating compliance by 
the PLO and the Palestinian Authority with all of their commitments. 
This bill is now part of the Foreign Operations Appropriations Act, 
which will be considered by the full Senate shortly.
  This past weekend, Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres and PLO 
Chairman Yasser Arafat met to try to finalize the agreement on the 
second phase of the Declaration of Principles. While substantial 
agreements have been reached on Palestinian elections, the redeployment 
of Israeli troops, and the expansion of Palestinian self-rule in the 
West Bank, differences remain over security arrangements in Hebron and 
the distribution of water resources. Both sides reiterated their 
commitment to return to the negotiating table to complete this phase at 
the earliest possible date.
  In adopting this resolution today, the Senate lends encouragement to 
Israel and the Palestinians as they seek to finalize the second phase 
of the Declaration of Principles. In doing so, we also mark an 
important milestone on the long road to peace between Israel and the 
Palestinians. As we take note of these achievements, let us also 
reiterate once again that the successful conclusion of a comprehensive 
peace in the Middle East is in the United States' national interest, 
and that we in the U.S. Senate stand firmly behind all those who are 
committed to achieving that peace.
  Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution and preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid 
upon the table, and that any statements appear at an appropriate place 
in the Record as if read.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 171) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:
       Whereas the Bush administration and the Clinton 
     administration have both worked relentlessly to build on the 
     Middle East peace process that began in Madrid in October 
     1991, with the goal of achieving a comprehensive, lasting 
     peace between Israel and all its neighbors;
       Whereas on September 13, 1993, the first major breakthrough 
     of the Madrid peace process was achieved when Israel and the 
     Palestinians signed the Declaration of Principles on Interim 
     Self-Government Arrangements on the White House lawn;
       Whereas September 13, 1995, marks the second anniversary of 
     this important breakthrough;
       Whereas the United States has pledged to support the 
     Israeli-Palestinian Declaration of Principles through 
     diplomatic and political efforts, the provision of 
     assistance, and other means;
       Whereas the May 4, 1994, Cairo Agreement between Israel and 
     the Palestinians resulted in the withdrawal of the Israeli 
     army from the Gaza Strip and the Jericho area and the 
     establishment of a Palestinian Authority with responsibility 
     for those areas;
       Whereas Israel and the Palestinian Authority are continuing 
     negotiations on the redeployment of Israeli troops out of 
     Arab population centers in the West Bank, the expansion of 
     the Palestinian Authority's jurisdiction into the areas 
     vacated by the Israeli army, and the convening of elections 
     for a Palestinian council;
       Whereas the Israeli-Palestinian Declaration of Principles 
     helped pave the way for the October 25, 1994, signing of a 
     full peace 

[[Page S13874]]
     treaty between Israel and Jordan, which established full diplomatic 
     relations and pledged to resolve all future disputes by 
     peaceful means;
       Whereas the Israeli-Jordanian peace treaty has resulted in 
     rapid normalization and unprecedented cooperation between the 
     two nations in security, economic development, the 
     environment, and other areas;
       Whereas the Israeli-Palestinian Declaration of Principles 
     helped pave the way for Israel to establish low-level 
     diplomatic relations with Morocco and Tunisia, and to 
     initiate official contacts with Qatar, Oman, and Bahrain;
       Whereas the six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council 
     have announced their decision to end all enforcement of the 
     secondary and tertiary boycotts of Israel;
       Whereas extremists opposed to the Middle East peace process 
     continue to use terrorism to undermine the chances of 
     achieving a comprehensive peace, including on August 21, 
     1995, when a suicide bomber blew up on a bus in Jerusalem, 
     killing one American and four Israeli civilians;
       Whereas the issue of security and preventing acts of 
     terrorism is and must remain of paramount importance in the 
     Israeli-Palestinian negotiations; and;
       Whereas compliance by the Palestine Liberation Organization 
     and the Palestinian Authority with all of their solemn 
     commitments is essential to the success of the peace process: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) expresses its support for the Israeli-Palestinian 
     Declaration of Principles on the second anniversary of its 
     historic signing;
       (2) supports the efforts of Israel and the Palestinians to 
     conclude an agreement on implementation of the second phase 
     of the Declaration of Principles;
       (3) condemns, in the strongest possible terms, all acts of 
     terrorism aimed at undermining the Israeli-Palestinian peace 
     negotiations and other tracks of the Middle East peace 
     process, and calls upon all parties to take all necessary 
     steps to prevent such acts;
       (4) calls upon the Palestine Liberation Organization and 
     the Palestinian Authority to comply with all of their 
     commitments;
       (5) welcomes the progress made toward peace between Israel 
     and its neighbors;
       (6) commends those Middle Eastern leaders who have 
     committed to resolve their differences through only peaceful 
     means;
       (7) reiterates its believe that a comprehensive, lasting 
     peace between Israel and its neighbors is in the national 
     interest of the United States;
       (8) encourages all participants in the Middle East peace 
     process to continue working to achieve lasting peace 
     agreements while adhering fully to all commitments made and 
     agreements reached thus far;
       (9) calls upon the Arab states to demonstrate their 
     commitment to peace by completely dismantling the Arab 
     boycott of Israel in its primary, secondary, and tertiary 
     aspects; and
       (10) strongly supports the Middle East peace process and 
     seeks to effect policies that will help the peace process 
     reach a successful conclusion.

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