Israel is to promote an economic plan to complement the agreement of principles ahead of a U.S.-proposed international peace conference later this year, local media reported on Thursday.
Daily newspaper Ha'aretz quoted Israeli government sources as saying that when the Palestinian state would be declared, Israel will promote a number of future investment projects as the " economic horizon" along with the "political horizon" progressing through the diplomatic channel.
On July 16, U.S. President George W. Bush announced that an international conference would be held this fall, which would include Israel, the Palestinians, and some neighboring Arab states, to help resume the stalled Middle East peace talks.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni told foreign ministers and other officials in Europe that the plan needed international support, said Ha'aretz.
The "strategic" projects Israel has suggested so far include infrastructure improvements such as electricity and water, city planning in the West Bank and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, rehabilitation of sewage systems and the establishment of a "peace corridor" in Jericho, said the daily.
Livni has presented the plan to the Quartet's Middle East envoy Tony Blair, whose work also fits into the economic horizon in terms of his assistance in the building of Palestinian governing institutions.
A four-way meeting took place on Wednesday in Jericho between Livni, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso, Jordanian Foreign Minister Abdelelah al-Khatib, and the Palestine Liberation Organization's chief of negotiations, Saeb Erekat.
The meeting focused on the initiative to further develop agricultural-industrial cooperation between Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan, dubbed "The Corridor for Peace and Prosperity."
In late July, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he intended to engage in negotiations with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas toward an "agreement of principles" for the establishment of a Palestinian state comprised of the Gaza Strip and most of the West Bank.
Source: Xinhua
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