Bush Set to Offer Plan for Palestinian State
President Bush indicated today in a meeting with the Saudi foreign minister that he had made up his mind to announce a plan to support the creation of a Palestinian state in order to give some immediate hope to Palestinians living under Israeli occupation, officials familiar with the talks said.

The proposal is designed to help quell violence and hold Palestinian leaders to a high standard of accountability for building institutions that can enforce peace and security for Israel and the new Palestinian state, the officials said.

Mr. Bush signaled his intention to lay out a proposal for Palestinian statehood, which he will probably do in a speech next week, during private talks at the White House with Saudi Arabia's foreign minister, Saud al-Faisal.

Mr. Bush did not spell out all the details of his plan in the 20-minute meeting with the Saudi minister, but the discussions included such matters as how to refer to the borders of a Palestinian state in any declaration, how to set a time line for negotiations and how to arrange the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the occupied West Bank so that Palestinian institutions can be rebuilt and reformed.

Mr. Bush made his intentions clear, these officials said, after weeks of speculation that a decision was being held up by a struggle within his administration over whether such a step held out any real hope of pacifying the region.

It could antagonize the Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, who met with Mr. Bush on Monday at the White House, or subject Mr. Bush to political attacks in Congress for appearing to reward Palestinians for the terrorist acts against Israeli civilians.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/06/14/international/14DIPL.html