By Xinhua writers Li Zhongfa, Li Jianmin BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhuanet) -- With white hair, deep-blue suit and a pair of gilt-edged glasses, he seems to be very genteel. However, behind the 70-year-old Palestinian leader was a long story of struggle: once a refugee in the first Middle East War, now a leader fighting for peace in Palestine.

    "I have a dream: I hope my children can live in an independent state of Palestine free of worries in the future," said President of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) Mahmoud Abbas in an exclusive interview with Xinhua on Wednesday.

    Abbas arrived here Tuesday afternoon for a three-day state visit to China at the invitation of Chinese President Hu Jintao. It is Abbas' first China trip since he succeeded Yasser Arafat to be the PNA president.

    "I need peace, not violence. I hope the Palestinian people can lead a life of ordinary persons and have basic necessities of life: clothing, food, shelter..." he said.

    "The Palestinian people need someone to lead them towards such a life. I believe I can make it."

    As the Palestinian designer of Oslo Accords, Abbas regarded the national interests of Palestine as the top priority and called for peaceful negotiations, while opposing to use force in resuming national rights of Palestine.

    Abbas took up the post of Palestinian representative to negotiate with Israel in 1991 and in 1993, he held 14 rounds of negotiations with Israel in the Norwegian capital Oslo, paving the way for the signing of the first peace deal between Palestine and Israel.

    On Sept. 13, 1993, Abbas and the then Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres signed the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements, or the so-called Oslo Accords, in Washington.

    "The Palestinian people are living in tragedy and cannot live a normal life. The apartheid walls and checkpoints built by Israel deeply affected the lives of our people. Such things always happen for pregnant women to give birth to a child at checkpoints, or sick people die on the road," said Abbas.

    "I will lead the Palestinian people to strive for peace and a normal life," he said. "So long as it can benefit our people, I will not complain or regret, no matter how much can I gain. "As a soldier of the Palestinian liberation movement, Abbas followed the late leader Arafat for four decades on the road to fight for resuming national rights of Palestine. After Arafat passed away on Nov. 11, 2004, Abbas succeeded himas chairman of the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization)Executive Committee. In January this year, he was elected PNApresident in the second general election in Palestinian history. "War and violence cannot be accepted by the world," he said. Therefore, Abbas is considered by Israel and the international community to be a "temperate, practical" leader. Between "armed struggle" and "peaceful negotiation", he chose the latter. In February, Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon declared a ceasefire deal to stop violence at the Feb. 8 summit in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, marking a halt of bloody conflicts that had continued for four years. However, some Palestinian armed factions were reluctant to observe the ceasefire agreement, and the Israeli soldiers were yet to withdraw from the settlements.

    "Currently, the situation is rather sensitive," he said. "Temporary quietness is very fragile, and a very tiny spark of fire could trigger large violent clashes."

    "There are indeed many problems existing between Palestine and Israel, nevertheless, they are not unsolvable," he said. At present, one of the difficult issues for Abbas is there exists great divergence among the different fractions of Palestine on the way to achieve peace between Palestine and Israel. "We have agreements among different fractions, hostile conflicts are unlikely to break out. I'm fully capable of controlling the situation," he said.

    "I look forward to strengthening internal unity and making progress in political restructuring," he added.

    "A MATURE POLITICAL LEADER"

    "He has shown his talent as a mature political leader, within less than half a year since he was elected the PNA president," said Li Guofu, a senior research fellow with the China Institute of International Studies, referring to the de facto truce declared by Sharon and Abbas in Sharm el-Sheikh.

    "He is a real peace seeker who has won support of the Palestinian people and acclaim from the international society," he said.

    In this month alone, Abbas had his world tour plan packed for diplomatic missions.

    Following an Arab-South American summit in Brazil on May 10-11,Abbas visited Japan, where he was promised 100 million US dollars by the Japanese government, on May 15-17 before heading on to China for a three-day visit. Then, he will continue his tour to Pakistan.

    Abbas will meet with US President George W. Bush in Washingtonon May 26, official Palestinian sources said Saturday. It will bethe first official visit by Abbas to Washington as PNA president. Ahead of his visit to the United States, Abbas will hold talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Egyptian diplomats told Xinhua Wednesday.

    Analysts said Abbas was touring around the world to seek international support, politically or economically. "As a political figure, Abbas wants to show the world that he has consolidated his position in Palestine after Arafat passed away and he wants the world to recognize his position," said Yu Guoqing, a deputy research fellow with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

    He also needs international participation in rebuilding Palestine, therefore he visited countries of influence to help him financially, Yu said.

    "His diplomatic moves will be very helpful to found the State of Palestine in the future," Yu added. Enditem