Powell, German Foreign Minister Media Availability

(Nov. 20: Middle East developments, reconstruction of Afghanistan)
(1850)


In a media availability with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer
at the State Department November 20, Secretary of State Colin Powell
said that in addition to discussing Afghanistan and some European
regional issues, he had shared with Fischer responses to his speech
yesterday on the Middle East.


Powell said he was pleased that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon
had announced the formation of a committee to which he referred in his
speech -- a committee on the negotiation and implementation of a
cease-fire. He also said Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat
had called him "to express his satisfaction with the speech and to say
that he was ready to cooperate."


There is a new opportunity in the Middle East, Powell said -- "an
opportunity that I hope both parties will seize, and the United States
will do its part."


Asked about the Israeli government's decision to build permanent
housing in Hebron, Powell reiterated the U.S. position on settlements
as a "disturbing and destabilizing factor."


"You will recall that the Mitchell Committee Report requires the end
of all settlement activity. Both sides have signed up to that report,
and it is one of the confidence-building measures they will have to
deal with," he said.


Regarding Afghanistan and the war on terrorism, Powell said he had
again thanked Fischer "for the very strong support Germany has
provided to us since the 11th of September, and as part of building
the coalition."


Fischer said that he had learned in a phone call just before his
discussions with Powell that the United Nations will hold its meeting
with Afghan leaders in Berlin on the formation of a transitional
government. He pointed to the Balkans as illustrating that
reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan "must be well organized."


"The Chancellor announced that we are ready for a substantial
contribution, and a sustainable contribution, not only in the
short-term perspective. And I think this is our responsibility as an
anti-terror coalition, that we ... will help in a sustainable way the
Afghan people," Fischer said.


Following is a transcript of the media availability:



(begin transcript)



U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Office of the Spokesman

November 20, 2001



REMARKS BY SECRETARY OF STATE COLIN L. POWELL AND HIS EXCELLENCY
JOSCHKA FISCHER, MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC
OF GERMANY,
AFTER THEIR MEETING



November 20, 2001

C Street Entrance

Washington, D.C.



11:10 A.M. EST



SECRETARY POWELL: Well, good morning, ladies and gentlemen. It's been
my pleasure, once again, to receive my good friend and guest, Joschka
Fischer, the Foreign Minister of Germany. We, as always, had a good
discussion of the issues that interest us the most and are on our
platter. We talked about Afghanistan, the next steps politically,
diplomatically, and militarily. I had the chance to again thank the
Minister for the very strong support that Germany has provided to us
since the 11th of September, and as part of building the coalition.


We also talked about some European regional issues, and we also talked
about the Middle East, and I had a chance to share with Mr. Fischer
the responses that I have received from the speech I gave yesterday. I
was pleased that Prime Minister Sharon has announced the formation of
the committee that I referred to yesterday, and will welcome the visit
of Assistant Secretary Burns and General Zinni in the not-too-distant
future. And I was also very pleased at the response from Chairman
Arafat and the Palestinian Authority. Chairman Arafat called me as
soon as I got back to Washington yesterday to express his satisfaction
with the speech and to say that he was ready to cooperate.


And I have also had other expressions from Amre Moussa, the Chairman
of the Arab League, and others. So we have a new opportunity before
us, an opportunity that I hope both parties will seize, and the United
States will do its part. And it has always been reassuring to have the
strong support of Minister Fischer and his government. Minister
Fischer travels through the region on a fairly regular basis, and I
have always welcomed his counsel and advice on these matters, and I
know that I will continue to receive that in the months ahead.


So Joschka, once again, welcome.



FOREIGN MINISTER FISCHER: Thank you very much. It's a great pleasure
for me on this nice morning to be here in Washington. And, first of
all, I want to congratulate my colleague, Colin Powell, to his very
important and impressive speech about the Middle East peace process
yesterday.


I think this is a very important initiative, and we are ready to
cooperate and give any support as the Federal Republic of Germany, as
Europe, to go ahead with the peace process. The situation in the
Middle East is very complicated, but I think the United States is in
the driver's seat.


First, the speech of the President in the General Assembly, I think,
was also very, very important, and now the speech of Colin Powell. And
we are very happy about the positive response of Arab leaders and of
the Israeli Prime Minister.


Secondly, we were talking about Afghanistan, and we are looking
forward now for the meeting of the UN with Afghan leaders to form a
transitional government. We will very closely cooperate here with the
UN, and I think it's very important to push forward now and speed up
this political process. And we are, of course, in close cooperation
with all of our allies, especially with the United States and the
United Nations, with the international aid community, to push forward
very important international aid for the Afghan people. Humanitarian
aid is very important.


We talked also about the summit between the two presidents of the
United States and Russia, and the relations between the West and NATO
and Russia. So it was all in all a very fruitful and successful
discussion.


Thank you very much.



QUESTION: Minister Fischer, you said Germany will cooperate very
closely. There is a report that you will host that meeting. Can you
confirm that Germany is the site for the parties, the multi-party
meeting?


FOREIGN MINISTER FISCHER: Yes, I can confirm that. Before the meeting
with Colin, I had a phone call with Mr. Brahimi, and he informed me
about the decision of the UN to have this meeting in Berlin, and we
are very happy about that.


QUESTION: Mr. Powell, what do you think of the Israeli Government's
decision to build permanent housing in Hebron after your call for an
end to settlements yesterday?


SECRETARY POWELL: Well, we have always had a position that these
settlements are a disturbing and destabilizing factor in our pursuit
for a solution to the Middle East crisis. And the position I stated
yesterday was a reaffirmation of the United States' position, and I
hope, in due course, as we get into the Mitchell Committee Report, the
two sides will deal with this issue once and for all.


You will recall that the Mitchell Committee Report requires the end of
all settlement activity. Both sides have signed up to that report, and
it is one of the confidence-building measures they will have to deal
with once we get into the cease-fire and then out of the cease-fire
and into the Mitchell Report, which will be the continuation, of
course, of a state of non-belligerency.


QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, can you tell us what the US position is on
seven days of quiet before confidence-building measures would be
implemented?


SECRETARY POWELL: My only concern right now is to get the meetings
going between the two committees, with General Zinni's assistance, and
that will happen, and the two sides can then discuss the conditions
and circumstances on which they move forward. So I don't really have
to talk at this point to the seven-day issue.


QUESTION: Secretary Powell, this morning you mentioned in the opening
of the reconstruction conference -- you mentioned setting up a
steering committee and then an implementation committee. Why should
people not look at this as just more committees being set up? What's
actually going to come out of this meeting this morning?


And for Foreign Minister Fischer, what specifically does the German
Government plan to do in terms of reconstruction, and also in terms of
your hosting of this meeting next week?


SECRETARY POWELL: We thought it was important to get started on the
reconstruction effort, and so we brought representatives of ministries
from around the world to Washington to form a steering group to start
to make plans with respect to what's going to be needed. It's not just
another committee. Committees are how you bring people together, and
then you pass the hat.


And you can be sure that this is a beginning of a process. There will
be other meetings. The Japanese will be hosting meetings, and as we go
down this process to more senior-level meetings, we will get concrete
contributions in terms of money and other resources that will be
needed by the Afghan people to rebuild their society.


FOREIGN MINISTER FISCHER: To answer your question, first of all,
reconstruction is not an easy thing. It must be well organized. It's
not only the declaration of a political will to reconstruct the
country. We made the experience in the Balkans that it must be well
organized. And by the way, now, we had the election in Kosovo, a very
successful outcome. We had the change of the constitution in
Macedonia, a very successful outcome. We had successes in the
reconstruction.


So I think Balkans is a very good example that things must be well
organized, and Germany is fully committed to that on the international
level, but also on the bilateral level. The Chancellor announced that
we are ready for a substantial contribution, and a sustainable
contribution, not only in the short-term perspective. And I think this
is our responsibility as an anti-terror coalition, that we are really
in -- will help in a sustainable way the Afghan people.


And the second question is very easy. We are glad and honored to be
the host for this meeting. And what we can do, we will contribute, but
not here by public announcement, but with the close cooperation with
Mr. Brahimi and the Afghan guests.


SECRETARY POWELL:  Thank you.



(The Secretary walked the Foreign Minister to his car.)



QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, is the amount of the reward for Usama bin
Laden now at 25 million?


SECRETARY POWELL: As you know, the Congress has authorized an award
program to capture Usama bin Laden and his associates, and the
authority for that program is vested in the Department of State and
the Secretary of State. And I have the authority, which I will use, to
authorize an award of up to $25 million for the capture of Usama bin
Laden. And the legal paperwork is being accomplished, but that will be
our position.


Thank you.



QUESTION:  Thank you, sir.



11:20 A.M. EST



(end transcript)



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