IV

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 24

Expressing congressional opposition to the unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state and urging the President to assert clearly United States opposition to such a unilateral declaration of statehood.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FEBRUARY 4, 1999

Mr. SALMON (for himself, Mr. SAXTON, Mr. DELAY, Mr. ENGLE, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. ROTHMAN, Mr. FORBES, Mr. SHERMAN, Ms. BERKLEY, Mr.

LAZIO, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mrs. KELLY, Mr. BRADY of Texas, Mr.

HORN, Mr. NADLER, Mr. WATTS of Oklahoma, Mr. FROST, Mr. ACKERMAN, Mr. ANDREWS, Mr. HAYWORTH, Mr. WEXLER, Mr. TANCREDO, Mr.

SCHAFFER, Mr. HOLDEN, Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN, Mr. PALLONE, Mr.

WELDON of Florida, Mr. DEUTSCH, Mr. CRANE, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. TALENT, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. TIAHRT, Mr. KASICH, Mr.

CROWLEY, Mr. WOLF, Mr. SISISKY, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. SHOWS, Mr.

LOBIONDO, Mr. HOEFFEL, Mr. GOODLING, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr.

WELLER, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. BLUNT, Mr. MCINTOSH, Mr. MCNULTY,

Mr. ENGLISH, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode Island, Mrs.

CUBIN, Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. LINDER, Mr. HEFLEY, Mr. NETHERCUTT,

Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey, Mr. CALVERT, Mr. COOK, Mr. ADERHOLT,

Mr. CUNNINGHAM, Mr. DOYLE, Ms. GRANGER, Mr. GIBBONS, Mr.

KNOLLENBERG, Mr. REYNOLDS, and Ms. NORTON) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Expressing congressional opposition to the unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state and urging the President

to assert clearly United States opposition to such a unilateral declaration of statehood.
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Whereas at the heart of the Oslo peace process lies the basic,

irrevocable commitment made by Palestinian Chairman

Yasir Arafat that, in his words, ‘‘all outstanding issues

relating to permanent status will be resolved through negotiations’’;

Whereas resolving the political status of the territory controlled by the Palestinian Authority while ensuring

Israel’s security is one of the central issues of the IsraeliPalestinian conflict;

Whereas a declaration of statehood by the Palestinians outside the framework of negotiations would, therefore, constitute a most fundamental violation of the Oslo process;

Whereas Yasir Arafat and other Palestinian leaders have repeatedly threatened to declare unilaterally the establishment of a Palestinian state;

Whereas the unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state

would introduce a dramatically destabilizing element into

the Middle East, risking Israeli countermeasures, a quick

descent into violence, and an end to the entire peace

process; and

Whereas, in light of continuing statements by Palestinian

leaders, United States opposition to any unilateral Palestinian declaration of statehood should be made clear

and unambiguous: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That—

3 (1) the final political status of the territory con4 trolled by the Palestinian Authority can only be de5 termined through negotiations and agreement be6 tween Israel and the Palestinian Authority;
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•HCON 24 IH

1 (2) any attempt to establish Palestinian state2 hood outside the negotiating process will invoke the

3 strongest congressional opposition; and

4 (3) the President should unequivocally assert

5 United States opposition to the unilateral declara6 tion of a Palestinian state, making clear that such

7 a declaration would be a grievous violation of the

8 Oslo accords and that a declared state would not be

9 recognized by the United States.

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