Powell says he is open to meeting with Mideast leaders

AP Diplomatic Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Secretary of State Colin Powell said Wednesday he was open to the idea of meeting with Israeli and Arab leaders during his trip to Europe next week.

"My mind is open," Powell told reporters at the State Department. "We are examining all possibilities"

Powell is due to leave Monday on a three-day trip to Germany and Spain for talks with European leaders and with Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov.

The Bush administration has come under pressure from Arab and European leaders, and also from a few members of Congress, to get more deeply involved in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

Powell suggested a decision on whether he would meet with Israeli and Arab ministers would depend on developments in the next few days.

He said he did not know how the situation would unfold. But, he said: "I would not rule out any meetings with anybody where it would serve a useful purpose."

Earlier, the White House renewed its public support of Israel's right to self-defense Wednesday and offered no hint of criticism of the expanded battle with Palestinian gunmen on the West Bank.

Arab leaders are demanding President Bush force Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to withdraw Israeli troops from Palestinian-held areas where they are fighting fierce battles in Bethlehem and pushing into other cities.

On Wednesday, Egypt announced it would suspend all diplomatic contacts with Israel except those that "serve the Palestinian cause."

"The president's position remains clear," White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said. "It's what he's been saying for days, that in the wake of the suicide bombings and the attacks that took place in Israel, he understands and respects Israel's right to defend herself."

Fleischer said Bush also wants Israel to bear in mind that "peace has got to be the result of any steps that are taken." The message applies to the Palestinians, as well, the spokesman said.

And the State Department called publicly for Egypt to maintain "the closest possible contact" with Israel "at this sensitive time." "We believe that dialogue is important," spokeswoman Susan Pittman said.

Meanwhile, Dore Gold, an adviser to Sharon, said Israel deeply appreciated Bush's backing "and that he has not been lured into the trap of an interventionist policy that will not solve anything at this point."

On the other hand, Richard Murphy, a former U.S. assistant secretary of state, said on a visit to Syria that he was not satisfied "with the depth of involvement of the American government in trying to restart political negotiations."

Murphy, a former ambassador to Damascus, said the Bush administration should take more interest in achieving peace in the region.

And a senior Republican senator, Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, urged the administration to take a more active role in seeking peace in the Middle East.

Specter said Powell should not wait until the fighting ebbs before making a trip to the region. "It's nice to go when you've got it all worked out and you can have a triumphant trip, but you can't go to bat and expect to hit a home run every time," Specter said.

Specter, just back from a trip to Jerusalem, said U.S. special envoy Anthony Zinni told him there are plans for a limited number of U.S. monitors to oversee any peacekeeping effort.

"If it comes to having a U.S. involvement, I think they ought to be armed and they ought to be military, whether you call them monitors or peacekeepers," Specter said.

With the violence level in Israel and the West Bank rising daily, the State Department is advising American residents of Jerusalem to relocate to safer places and is encouraging dependents of American diplomats in the city to return to the United States.

Warnings to stay away from Israel were issued to Americans in December and January. The latest, more pointed, specified Jerusalem as a place Americans should consider leaving and offered government-paid trips home to families of U.S. diplomats and of other American workers at the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem.

Israel's economy already is staggering under the destruction caused by terror attacks, the expense of a military buildup and a sharp decline in tourist visits. The new U.S. warning is bound to add to Americans' anxieties about visiting Israel.

Also Tuesday, the University of California said it was arranging travel back to the United States for 27 students enrolled in programs in Israel and putting its fall 2002 academic program in Israel on hold "in view of the dramatically escalating violence in the Middle East."

The school said it was joining the universities of Colorado and Washington in recalling students from Israel. The university noted that 28 of its students in Israel previously abandoned their studies there.