media releaseGlobal Leaders Call for Action on Arab-Israeli Settlement ***EMBARGOED UNTIL 0300h CET (0100 GMT), WEDNESDAY, 4 OCTOBER***Brussels/Washington/New York/London/Amman, 4 October 2006: 135 respected global leaders -- former presidents, prime ministers, foreign and defence ministers, congressional leaders and heads of international organisations -- have today joined in a call for urgent international action to comprehensively resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict. Their statement (full text and signatories below) says there is a “desperate need for fresh thinking and the injection of new political will” if the conflict, “with all its terrible consequences”, is ever to be settled. They say that ideally there would be a new all-in international conference to kick-start detailed negotiations, but that whether or not this can happen soon, there should be: International support for a Palestinian national unity government, with an end to the political and financial boycott of the Palestinian Authority; Talks between Israel and the Palestinian leadership, on both the immediate issues of mutual security and revival of the Palestinian economy, and on the core final-status political issues; These talks to be mediated or sponsored by the Quartet (UN, US, EU and Russia) -- reinforced by participation of the Arab League and key regional countries -- who would also initiate talks on the outstanding issues between Israel, Syria and Lebanon. “There is a real hunger out there for present-day political leaders to take hold of this catastrophically divisive issue and resolve it once and for all,” said Gareth Evans, President of the International Crisis Group, which organised the statement. “It is remarkable how much immediate support there was for this statement from so many highly experienced, top-level former public sector leaders from around the world and across the political spectrum. Like the great majority of ordinary Israelis and Palestinians, they just want to get things moving now, cut through the obstacles, and put in place the elements of a sustainable peace.” This statement is part of Crisis Group’s new global advocacy initiative, announced on 22 September, designed to generate fresh political momentum behind a comprehensive settlement following the chaos of the last few months. Other elements involve brainstorming sessions on strategy with UN, Quartet and regional experts, led by Middle East Program Director Rob Malley; a particular effort to stimulate a bipartisan rethink of US policy; task force visits to key capitals; and a continuing stream of Crisis Group reports and briefings containing detailed analysis and policy recommendations. A detailed new Crisis Group report, The Arab-Israeli Conflict: To Reach a Lasting Peace, is scheduled for publication on Thursday, 5 October 2006.^ Contacts: Andrew Stroehlein (Brussels) +32 (0) 2 541 1635 media@crisisgroup.orgKimberly Abbott (Washington) +1 202 785 160 For a display copy of the statement and signatories in PDF format, click herewww.crisisgroup.orgTowards a Comprehensive Settlement of theArab-Israeli Conflict With the Middle East immersed in its worst crisis for years, we call for urgent international action towards a comprehensive settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Everyone has lost in this conflict except the extremists throughout the world who prosper on the rage that it continues to provoke. Every passing day undermines prospects for a peaceful, enduring solution. As long as the conflict lasts, it will generate instability and violence in the region and beyond. The outlines of what is needed are well known, based on UN Security Council resolutions 242 of 1967 and 338 of 1973, the Camp David peace accords of 1978, the Clinton Parameters of 2000, the Arab League Initiative of 2002, and the Roadmap proposed in 2003 by the Quartet (UN, US, EU and Russia). The goal must be security and full recognition to the state of Israel within internationally recognized borders, an end to the occupation for the Palestinian people in a viable independent, sovereign state, and the return of lost land to Syria. We believe the time has come for a new international conference, ideally held as soon as possible and attended by all relevant players, at which all the elements of a comprehensive peace agreement would be mapped, and momentum generated for detailed negotiations. Whether or not such an early conference can be convened, there are crucial steps that can and should be taken by the key players, including: Support for a Palestinian national unity government, with an end to the political and financial boycott of the Palestinian Authority. Talks between Israel and the Palestinian leadership, mediated by the Quartet and reinforced by the participation of the Arab League and key regional countries, on rapidly enhancing mutual security and allowing revival of the Palestinian economy. Talks between the Palestinian leadership and the Israeli government, sponsored by a reinforced Quartet, on the core political issues that stand in the way of achieving a final status agreement. Parallel talks of the reinforced Quartet with Israel, Syria and Lebanon, to discuss the foundations on which Israeli-Syrian and Israeli-Lebanese agreements can be reached. Nobody underestimates the intractability of the underlying issues or the intensity of feelings they provoke. But if the Arab-Israeli conflict, with all its terrible consequences, is ever to be resolved, there is a desperate need for fresh thinking and the injection of new political will. The times demand no less. ^ Morton Abramowitz Former US Assistant Secretary of State and Ambassador to Turkey and ThailandAdnan Abu-Odeh Former Political Adviser to King Abdullah II and King Hussein, JordanEsko Aho Former Prime Minister, FinlandAli Alatas Former Foreign Minister, Indonesia^ Abdul-Kareem Al-Eryani Former Prime Minister, YemenRaúl Alfonsín Former President, ArgentinaLord Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon Former UN High Representative for Bosnia & HerzegovinaLloyd Axworthy Former Foreign Minister, CanadaPeter Barry Former Foreign Minister, Ireland^ Shlomo Ben-Ami Former Foreign Minister, IsraelAlexander Bessmertnykh Former Foreign Minister, Soviet UnionCarl Bildt Former Prime Minister, SwedenValdis Birkavs Former Prime Minister, Latvia^ James Bolger Former Prime Minister, New ZealandKjell Magne Bondevik Former Prime Minister, NorwayBoutros Boutros-Ghali Former Secretary-General, UNLakhdar Brahimi Former Foreign Minister, Algeria, and UN Special Representative^ Gro Harlem Brundtland Former Prime Minister, NorwayZbigniew Brzezinski Former National Security Advisor to the President, United StatesKim Campbell Former Prime Minister, Canada; Secretary General, Club of Madrid^ Ingvar Carlsson Former Prime Minister, SwedenFrank Carlucci Former Secretary of Defense, United StatesJimmy Carter 39th President, United States; Nobel Peace Prize 2002Maria Livanos Cattaui Former Secretary-General, International Chamber of Commerce^ Naresh Chandra Former Indian Cabinet Secretary and Ambassador to USClaude Cheysson Former Foreign Minister, FranceJean Chrétien Former Prime Minister, CanadaWesley Clark Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, Europe^ Gerard Collins Former Foreign Minister, Ireland Pat Cox Former President, European ParliamentJacques Delors Former President, European CommissionGianni De Michelis Former Foreign Minister, ItalyRuth Dreifuss Former President, Switzerland^ Roland Dumas Former Foreign Minister, FranceShirin Ebadi Nobel Peace Prize 2003; IranUffe Ellemann-Jensen Former Foreign Minister, DenmarkGareth Evans President, International Crisis Group; Former Foreign Minister, Australia^ Mark Eyskens Former Prime Minister, BelgiumJosé María Figueres Former President, Costa RicaVigdís Finnbogadóttir Former President, IcelandJoschka Fischer Former Foreign Minister, Germany^ Malcolm Fraser Former Prime Minister, AustraliaAnil K Gayan Former Foreign Minister, MauritiusLeslie H Gelb President Emeritus, Council on Foreign Relations, United StatesBronisław Geremek Former Foreign Minister, PolandKiro Gligorov Former President, Macedonia^ Richard Goldstone Former Prosecutor, International Criminal Tribunal for the former YugoslaviaFelipe González MárquezFormer Prime Minister, SpainMikhail S GorbachevFormer President, Soviet Union; Nobel Peace Prize 1990^ I K GujralFormer Prime Minister, IndiaTenzin Gyatso14th Dalai Lama; Nobel Peace Prize 1989Vahit M HalefoğluFormer Foreign Minister, TurkeyLee HamiltonFormer Congressman, United States; Director, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars ^ Bob Hawke Former Prime Minister, AustraliaBill HaydenFormer Governor-General and Foreign Minister, AustraliaCarla HillsFormer Trade Representative, United StatesLena Hjelm-WallénFormer Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sweden^ Raffi K HovannisianFormer Foreign Minister, ArmeniaLord Howe of AberavonFormer Foreign Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister, UKJohn HumeFormer First Minister of Northern Ireland; Nobel Peace Prize 1998Lord Hurd of WestwellFormer Foreign Secretary, UKGeorge IacovouFormer Foreign Minister, Cyprus^ Anwar IbrahimFormer Deputy Prime Minister, MalaysiaJames IngramFormer Executive Director, UN World Food ProgrammeAsma JahangirChair, Pakistan Human Rights Commission; UN Special RapporteurMax JakobsonFormer Ambassador of Finland to the UN^ Lionel JospinFormer Prime Minister, FranceMarwan S KasimFormer Foreign Minister, JordanKim Dae-jungFormer President, Republic of Korea; Nobel Peace Prize 2000F W de Klerk Former President, South Africa; Nobel Peace Prize 1993^ Wim KokFormer Prime Minister, NetherlandsBernard KouchnerFounder, Médecins Sans Frontières; Former Minister, France, and UN Special RepresentativeMilan KučanFormer President, SloveniaAleksander KwaśniewskiFormer President, Poland^ Ricardo LagosFormer President, ChileZlatko LagumdžijaFormer Prime Minister, Bosnia & HerzegovinaAnthony LakeFormer National Security Advisor to the President, United StatesLee Hong-KooFormer Prime Minister, Republic of Korea^ Ahmed MaherFormer Foreign Minister, EgyptAbdul Salam MajaliFormer Prime Minister, JordanJohn MajorFormer Prime Minister, UKBarbara McDougallFormer External Affairs Secretary, Canada^ Matthew F McHughFormer US Congressman and World Bank CounselorRobert McNamaraFormer Secretary of Defense, United StatesRexhep MeidaniFormer President, AlbaniaNajib MikatiFormer Prime Minister, Lebanon^ Mike Moore Former Prime Minister, New Zealand; Former Director-General, WTOMarwan MuasherFormer Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, JordanKlaus NaumannFormer Chairman, North Atlantic Military Committee of NATO, Germany^ Boyko Noev Former Minister of Defence, BulgariaAyo ObeChair, World Movement for Democracy, NigeriaSadako OgataFormer UN High Commissioner for RefugeesLord Owen of the City of PlymouthFormer Foreign Secretary, UKAnand PanyarachunFormer Prime Minister, Thailand^ Andrés PastranaFormer President, ColombiaLord Patten of BarnesCo-Chair, International Crisis Group; Former European Commissioner for External RelationsThomas PickeringCo-Chair, International Crisis Group; Former US Ambassador to the UN, Russia, India, Israel, Jordan, El Salvador and Nigeria^ Josep PiquéFormer Foreign Minister, SpainSurin PitsuwanFormer Foreign Minister, ThailandYevgeny PrimakovFormer Prime Minister, RussiaJorge QuirogaFormer President, Bolivia^ Augusto Ramírez Ocampo Former Foreign Minister, ColombiaFidel V Ramos Former President, PhilippinesPoul Nyrup RasmussenFormer Prime Minister, DenmarkAbdur-ra’uf Rawabdeh Former Prime Minister, JordanMalcolm RifkindFormer Foreign Secretary, UK^ Lord Robertson of Port EllenFormer Defence Secretary, UK, and NATO Secretary-GeneralMary RobinsonFormer President, Ireland, and High Commissioner for Human RightsMichel Rocard Former Prime Minister, FrancePetre RomanFormer Prime Minister, Romania^ Adam Daniel RotfeldFormer Foreign Minister, PolandNafis SadikFormer Executive Director, UN Population FundMohamed SahnounFormer Algerian Ambassador; UN Special AdviserGhassan Salamé Former Culture Minister, LebanonSalim Ahmed SalimFormer Secretary General, OAU, and Prime Minister, Tanzania^ Jorge Sampaio Former President, PortugalGonzalo Sánchez de LozadaFormer President, BoliviaMario SoaresFormer President, PortugalStephen SolarzFormer Chair, Africa & Asia Subcommittees, US Congress^ Cornelio SommarugaFormer President, International Committee of the Red CrossGeorge SorosChairman, Open Society InstitutePär StenbäckFormer Foreign Minister, FinlandThorvald StoltenbergFormer Foreign Minister, NorwayHRH El Hassan bin Talal Founder, Arab Thought Forum, Jordan^ Leo TindemansFormer Prime Minister, BelgiumAlex S TrigonaFormer Foreign Minister, MaltaDesmond TutuArchbishop Emeritus of Cape Town; Nobel Peace Prize 1984Cassam UteemFormer President, Mauritius^ Hans van den BroekFormer Foreign Minister, Netherlands, and European Commissioner for External Relations Ed van ThijnFormer Minister and Mayor of Amsterdam, NetherlandsGeorge VassiliouFormer President, CyprusHubert VédrineFormer Foreign Minister, FranceRichard von WeizsäckerFormer President, GermanyBaroness Williams of CrosbyFormer Cabinet Minister, UKErnesto ZedilloFormer President, Mexico Organized by Crisis Group with assistance from the Club of Madrid and placed with support from the Radcliffe Foundation, Iara Lee & George Gund Foundation and Hamza Al Kholi. www.crisisgroup.org