CRAWFORD, Texas, April 6 (UPI) -- President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Saturday said they expected Israel to immediately withdraw its military forces from Palestinian occupied territories and demanded that Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat go on television and renounce the terrorist attacks in Arabic to his followers and other Arab nations.
In a joint news conference at Crawford High School, President Bush issued his firmest demands yet to both parties and seemed piqued that both sides had not heeded his urging last Thursday when he sent Secretary of State Colin Powell to the region.
"We agree the Palestinian leadership must order an immediate and effective cease-fire and crackdown on terrorist networks," Bush said. "And we agree that Israel should halt incursions in Palestinian controlled areas and begin to withdraw without delay from those cities it has recently occupied."
Bush expressed his dismay that Arafat has ordered a stop to the suicide bombers, saying that the Arab leader has not yet earned his respect.
"Chairman Arafat has not kept his word. He said he would fight off terror. He hasn't. He needs to speak clearly, in Arabic, to the people of that region and condemn terrorist activities."
Bush and Blair also strongly defended the notion that there is "linkage" between the "terrorist" violence on the West Bank and Iraq, claiming that Saddam Hussein's development of weapons of mass destruction and demonstrated willingness to use them against his own people was a threat to Middle East stability.
The two leaders spent the morning in talks ranging from the U.S.-war on terrorism to the trade, but which centered primarily on the escalating crisis in the Middle East. Blair arrived at Bush's Prairie Chapel ranch, on Friday. The two leaders, whose closeness was forged after Blair rushed to Bush's side following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, had been planning to concentrate on how to neutralize Iraq at the meeting. They found their talks dominated by the most serious outbreak of Middle East fighting in a decade.
"We share a vision of two states -- Israel and Palestinian living side-by-side in peace and in security. We agree this vision will never be realized through terrorism and it can only be realized only through a political process," Bush said.
He lauded the prime minister as a close confidant and a strong ally in the world's strife.
"I appreciate his advice. I appreciate his counsel and I appreciate his friendship," Bush said of Blair. Bush expressed condolences to the prime minister and the British people on the death of the Queen Mother whose funeral is to be held on London on Tuesday. First lady Laura Bush will lead the presidential delegation to the event.
The president spoke with a firm resolve in his voice as he once again demanded Israel withdraw its troops from the Palestinian cities and towns without delay and insisted that Arafat work harder to halt the terrorist activities of the suicide bombers.
Despite Bush's hard line on Israeli withdrawal that he first presented to the world on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has allowed further incursions into occupied areas of the West Bank, particularly in areas such as Jenin, considered a haven for Palestinian extremists. Reports from the region on Saturday stated that Israel had invaded southern areas of Lebanon along its disputed borders.
"I was worried about the balance being tipped to the point where we wouldn't be able to achieve a long-lasting peace,' Bush said. "I gave the speech at the right time and I expect Israel to heed my advice. And I expect the Palestinians to reject terror."
Asked what happens if Israel continues on its current path, Bush said: "I don't expect them to ignore [me]. I need them to heed the call from their friends United States, heed the call from their friends, the people of Great Britain."
Blair said both nations understood the terrorism that Israel has been subject too, but said that they were trying to help them overcome the impasse to get into a political process so that the carnage would stop.
Sharon told Bush in a telephone conversation later Saturday that Israel will expedite its military offensive in the West Bank. But a statement from the prime minister's office did not say when the operation would end. There was no immediate Palestinian response to the Texas news conference.
Bush on Thursday dispatched Powell into the region in hopes that Powell could negotiate an end to the fighting. He gave Powell new authority to discuss settlement in a political context, reversing the U.S. stance that no negotiations could begin unless the parties ended the violence.
Blair said he and Bush also discussed matters of trade and other bilateral issues key to their respective countries in addition to the Mideast crisis.
He echoed his support for Bush's stance as the only basis for a "viable and lasting peace" in the region. He said they also spoke on international terrorism, praising Bush for his leadership in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.
"Although very much remains to be done, we accomplished nonetheless a very great deal in Afghanistan and in the pursuit of those responsible for that terrible event. We will work in anyway we can to make sure this scourge of international terrorism is defeated," Blair said.
On Afghanistan, Blair said the U.S-British partnership helped the developing nation rebound from being a failed state to one with promise.
Both the United States and Britain are militarily extended. The United Kingdom contributed large contingents of troops, second only to the United States, to Afghanistan, including combat forces to assist in finding al Qaida holdouts, and peacekeepers to secure populated areas.
Bush said Thursday that the 1,700 British troops stationed within Afghanistan would not be locked into a never-ending commitment, but stressed that it was key to locate the remaining al Qaida holdouts and bring them to justice.
Turning to the dilemma of Iraqi and its weapons of mass destruction, Blair said the two leaders made it clear that such weapons cannot be ignored as a danger to the world and that nations must act to prevent the threat from being realized. Bush echoed his position that U.S. government policy remains that Iraqi needs a change of regime and that "all options are on the table."
Blair echoed Bush's stance.
"A situation where he continues to be in breach of all the United Nations resolutions, refusing to allow us to assess, as the international community have demanded, whether and how he is developing these weapons of mass destruction. Doing nothing in those circumstances is not an option, so we consider all the options available," Blair said.
Bush told reporters that both leaders recognize the "danger of a man who is willing to kill his own people and harboring and creating weapons of mass destruction...He is obviously a man who has something to hide."
(Reported by Kathy Gambrell and Nicholas Horrock in Washington, D.C. Joshua Brilliant contributed from Tel Aviv)
