No sign of Gen. Jones' security report

US Middle East security coordinator meets Barak to discuss regional, security and diplomatic issues.

By HERB KEINON
James jones barak 224.88 (photo credit: GPO)
James jones barak 224.88
(photo credit: GPO)
US Middle East security coordinator Gen. James Jones met Defense Minister Ehud Barak on the final day of his three-day visit Wednesday, but Israeli and US diplomatic officials were still unable to say when Jones will present to US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice his long-awaited report on Israel's security needs for the day after the establishment of a Palestinian state. Barak's office put out a laconic statement after the meeting, saying the two men discussed a number of regional, security and diplomatic issues. The US embassy released no information on the talks. Jones was appointed by Rice after last November's Annapolis conference and tasked with defining Israel's vital security needs, which would need to be addressed in any final Palestinian-Israeli agreement. Among the questions he is believed to be addressing are the degree to which a future Palestinian state would have to be de-militarized, the nature of the law enforcement and judicial system in the Palestinian Authority, the size of the future Palestinian security apparatus, and the nature and location of early-warning systems that Israel would require. Diplomatic sources said that Jones was expected to present his document to Rice before the end of the Bush Administration, so it could serve as a guidepost for the next administration, whoever may lead it. The officials said it was not clear whether or how the document would be made public. Barak, during his meeting with Jones, briefed the general on what he said was the significant security change that has been felt in the Jenin area since PA President Mahmoud Abbas's security forces deployed there in May. Barak also called for international investment in economic projects in the region. Jones on Monday went to Mount Gilboa, the site of a planned joint Israel-PA industrial park for the Jenin area, for talks with Israeli and Palestinian officials.