CANBERRA, Nov. 11 (Xinhuanet) -- Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer on Thursday expressed his condolences upon the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

    He described Arafat, who died in Paris at the age of 75, as "the most significant and influential leader of his people over the many years of their struggle for a Palestinian state."

    "We did not always agree with his ideas on how to achieve security and stability in the turbulent Middle East, but we acknowledge his unswerving commitment to his people," Downer said in a statement.

    "We also recognize the historic role he played, along with late Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, in signing the Oslo Peace Accords in Washington in 1993," he said.

    "We now look to Mr. Arafat's successor to find new opportunities for peace with Israel," he said.

    "Mr. Arafat made the crucial start to what Australians and many others around the world hope will become a secure, independent Palestinian state living at peace with its neighbors," he added. Enditem