State Department spokesman Richard Boucher announced December 15 that Senior Advisor Anthony Zinni is returning to Washington for consultations after almost three weeks in the Mideast working with Israeli and Palestinian leaders to help bring their confrontation to an end.
Following is the text of Boucher's announcement:
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U.S. Department of State
Office of the Spokesman
Washington, DC
Press Statement by Richard Boucher, Spokesman
Secretary Powell has asked Senior Advisor Anthony Zinni to return to Washington for consultations. The purpose of these consultations is to provide an assessment to the President and Secretary Powell of the situation in light of recent events and how best to proceed. General Zinni will remain engaged and return to the region.
For almost three weeks, General Zinni has been working closely with Prime Minister Sharon and Chairman Arafat to help bring the Israeli-Palestinian confrontation to an end. He recently joined Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs Bill Burns in Amman and Cairo for consultations with King Abdullah and President Mubarak.
Ending the ongoing terror and violence is the top priority for the U.S., but major challenges remain which both the Israelis and Palestinians will have to overcome. The U.S. is committed to doing everything it can to help the two sides end the violence and return to a political process. We will remain engaged with Israel and the Palestinian Authority in working towards a durable ceasefire.
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(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)