Abbas's Sharm Address

Speech at the end of the summit at Sharm e-Sheikh attended by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, and Jordan's King Abdullah.

We have agreed with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on an end to all acts of violence against Israelis and Palestinians, wherever they are.

The quiet that our land is experiencing today is a new beginning toward attaining peace.

What we declared today represents the implementation of the first part of the road map. It is a very important step that could facilitate an opportunity to resume the political process and bring it back on track, one where the two peoples gain back hope and trust and a possibility to achieve peace.

...As concerns an end to settlements and the release of prisoners, our stance is clear. It will prompt us to move forward in the road map framework to attain a permanent accord in order to reach the 1967 borders, including a solution to the problems of Jerusalem, the refugees, and the settlements...

The time has come for the Palestinian people to achieve their independence and their freedom.

The time has come for our people to live in peace, like all peoples within the framework of the law. It is important that all this be under the auspices of a single authority; a sole bearer of arms.

Here at Sharm, a city of peace, we again declare in the name of the PLO and the PA our obligations to peace, to international agreements, and to the agreements between the PLO and Israel.

We aspire to reach that day as quickly as possible, through dialogue. We want neighborly relations and coexistence, without a fence.

Let us all pledge that the aspirations to peace become reality. Let us begin using the language of negotiations instead of the language of bullets and cannons.