    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book I)]
    [March 13, 1996]
    [Page 444]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following Discussions With President Ezer Weizman of Israel and
    an Exchange With Reporters in Jerusalem, Israel
    March 13, 1996

        The President.  Let me say that it is a great honor to be back at
    the President's house and with the President again. And along with the
    Prime Minister, we were able to give a report on our impressions of what
    happened at Sharm al-Sheikh today and what the significance of it was,
    and then we talked a little bit about the challenges ahead. We spent
    about an hour in a very good discussion, and as always when I'm with the
    President, I learned a lot and I leave with a lot of food for thought.
        But I feel much better about our prospects for presenting a united
    front against terror and for security and therefore creating and
    maintaining conditions under which the peace process can proceed than I
    did before I went to Sharm al-Sheikh today. And I thank the Prime
    Minister for his work, and I say again, I came here more than anything
    else just to once again express the solidarity of the United States with
    Israel, grief at your loss, and our determination to do what we can both
    to restore your security and to preserve the march of peace.

    Israel's Capital

        Q. President Clinton, do you have any reflections on President
    Weizman not going to the airport, obviously intending thereby to
    demonstrate Israel's historic commitment to Jerusalem being its capital,
    a position that you endorsed yourself during your campaign but we
    haven't heard much from you on since? Do you have any feeling about that
    situation you'd like to share with us?
        The President. No. My feeling is what it has been ever since the
    first agreement was reached in which Israel and the Palestinian
    Authority agreed that that would be part of the final negotiations. And
    the United States agreed that we would support the process that Israel
    had fashioned, and that's what I intend to continue to do. I haven't
    changed my position on anything. I just--I believe that we are a partner
    in a process that primarily affects the Israelis and the neighbors of
    Israel, and we ought to support the process that the parties agreed to
    for resolving all those matters.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:20 p.m. at President Weizman's
    residence. A tape was not available for verification of the content of
    these remarks.