US's reluctant policy on Mid-East

The Bush administration called on both sides to exercise restraint

By BBC News Online's Fergus Nicoll

With palpable reluctance, George W Bush is finally getting involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Striving for a neutral stance, he called on Yasser Arafat to express open and forceful condemnation of extremism by his followers and on Israel to exercise restraint in its military response.

If you withdraw, you create chaos, not only here but in the whole region

Palestinian Authority minister Yasser Abed Rabbo

Speaking in Washington, the US President also pledged to embark on a series of meetings, including President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and King Abdallah of Jordan, to explore ways to end the on-going violence.

It is a cautious policy that has taken some time to come together.

Were Bill Clinton still in office, his special envoy Dennis Ross would even now be shuttling between Jerusalem and Gaza amid loud expressions of concern from the White House and State Department.

But the Bush administration has abolished the position of special envoy. The Secretary of State, Colin Powell, is not saying much.

And the White House has limited itself to a mild statement calling on both sides to exercise restraint.

The statement said the "tragic cycle of incitement and provocation" had continued for far too long.

New order

Such limited interest as has been shown so far by Mr Bush's foreign team has been enough to persuade many in the Arab world that unquestioning US support for Ariel Sharon's coalition government is the new order.

Mr Powell seems to agree with some of the Israeli positions

First came the cosy Bush-Sharon meeting in Washington, described by Mr Powell as "candid talks between two friends".

"We made sure that Israel understood our complete commitment to their security," said Mr Powell.

Then, on 27 March, the US representative on the UN Security Council wielded his veto to reject a Palestinian bid for an unarmed international observer force to protect Palestinian citizens, nullifying the support of the majority on the council.

That decision was denounced by Arab heads of state at this week's Amman Summit, who warned Washington that it had "commitments and responsibilities" as the main broker of an albeit moribund peace process.

No rush

One Palestinian, dismayed at America's perceived pro-Israeli bias, has warned Washington against taking "kind of a reckless position".

"If they want to mediate, their position should be more balanced," said Abu Mazen, a veteran Palestinian negotiator close to Yasser Arafat, after the Bush-Sharon talks.

The Arab leaders warned Washington that it had responsibilities

But there is a worse option - that Washington is in no rush to mediate at all.

Mr Bush is personally absorbed in domestic affairs such as tax cuts, while Colin Powell has so far failed to stamp his personal authority on US foreign policy.

In a speech to the US National Newspaper Association on 23 March on the "great challenge" in the Middle East, Mr Powell echoed the Sharon position that renewed dialogue was not possible until the violence comes to an end.

"Let's get security cooperation and coordination going again between the two sides. And then, when we have a more stable situation, we can take action to begin discussions toward peace once more," he said.

Which leaves the Palestinians spluttering in protest at America's "withdrawal" from active involvement.

'Chaos'

"You cannot withdraw whenever you choose. If you withdraw, you create chaos, not only here but in the whole region," said Yasser Abed Rabbo, a Palestinian Authoritity minister.

The reality of the Middle East tends to impose itself upon the United States

Dennis Ross

But even Dennis Ross, now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, acknowledges that any US involvement must be guided by limited ambitions.

"The objectives now must be to develop a code of conduct that changes the day-to-day behaviour of Israelis and Palestinians, while also negotiating more limited political agreements on statehood and security: two issues on which there is some convergence," Mr Ross wrote recently in US News.

But the former negotiator is certain that the Bush administration will become embroiled in the Israel-Palestinian conflict, whether it wants to or not.

"The reality of the Middle East tends to impose itself upon the United States," he said.