Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit said Saturday that the Middle East peace roadmap needed to be modified and called on the Palestinians to clarify their position towards its principles. "The roadmap needs to be modified because its expiry date was last year in 2005," Abul Gheit said at a conference in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria.Palestinians need to "create a clear workplan to define the Palestinian Authority's position on the principles fixed by the Quartet," Abul Gheit said. "The language of negotiation is the only way to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. If we succeed in gathering all the parties to participate... we could reach an agreement that may take several years to implement."
The international "roadmap" to peace was designed by the so-called Middle East Quartet of the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations. It was announced in 2003, with the aim of establishing by 2005 a viable Palestinian state living alongside Israel in peace.
