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A CONVERSATION WITH MAHMOUD ABBAS

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Has the United States been active enough?

Yes. They showed readiness and are serious, as I heard from President Bush and [Secretary of State] Condoleezza Rice. They want to achieve some kind of progress on this track during the tenure of President Bush.

Did President Bush tell you that that was true?

Yes. We heard from Bush. He said that he is fully supporting Condoleezza Rice, and she is talking for him -- she is his representative. Rice alone cannot deliver. Do you remember his initiative when he talked about the two-state solution?

But now you have three states.

No, Gaza is not a state. Nobody recognizes Gaza. We have one authority, one cabinet, one government. Hamas is an illegal government.

How do you envision the borders of the future state ?

'67 borders.

But '67 borders will include Gaza.

Yes, of course. Without Gaza, we cannot have a state. And we should have a safe passage between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank because Gaza is a part of Palestine. . . . All the Arabs support this vision. At the last meeting of the Arab League, they issued a statement saying that Hamas's deeds were illegal. And they recognized my authority as the legal authority.

Is Saudi Arabia coming to Washington in November?

Saudi Arabia had reservations in the beginning because the whole situation was very vague. Now everything is clear. Yesterday, I met with Prince Saud al-Faisal, and he was satisfied. So I believe they will attend the conference.

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