Special report: Crisis between Israel and Palestine

    RAMALLAH, May 24 (Xinhua) -- Spokesman of Palestinian Presidency on Wednesday rejected Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's statements he made in Washington as "discouraging."

    "These discouraging remarks aim to make changes on the Road Map peace plan in a way that helps Olmert carry out his plan," Nabil Abu Redinah told reporters in Ramallah.

    Olmert, who is visiting the U.S. capital of Washington, said on Tuesday after a meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush that Israel is committed to the U.S.-backed road map, which is aimed at creating a Palestinian state along with a secure Israel, but Israel would not wait indefinitely for the Hamas government to moderate its stances toward Israel.

    He said that he would try to negotiate a peace agreement with the Palestinians, but if peace efforts fail, Israel would carry out unilateral withdrawals in the West Bank and set final borders before 2010.

    The road map, emerged in 2003, called for bilateral negotiations in the peace process, which has been long stalled due to repeated violence and violations of the peace plan in the past few years.

    Now, with Hamas, which denies Israel's existence, in power, Israel won't deal with the current Hamas-led Palestinian government and consequently peace talks between the two sides are unlikely for the time being.

    Olmert, who formally assumed premiership in early May, has vowed to withdraw isolated Jewish settlements in the West Bank but keep bigger ones and then set Israel's permanent borders before 2010, in case there is no peace deals with the Palestinian side. Enditem