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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Office of Public Information SNEH SEES PEACE ACHIEVED IN NEAR FUTURE Deputy Defense Minister Addresses Jewish Council for Public Affairs Annual Plenum February 27, 2000 – Baltimore, MD – Israel’s deputy defense minister called today on the American Jewish community to continue to support Israel’s quest for peace and security. Speaking before delegates at the Jewish Council for Public Affairs plenum 2000, Ephraim Sneh thanked the American Jewish community for its past support and reminded delegates that the road to peace is complex but attainable. As Israel and Syria inch toward an agreement, Sneh asserted that only a strong Israel can achieve peace. To accomplish this, Sneh said that Israel is planning to request a "risk reduction package" or a "peace securing package" from the U.S. The package would include new intelligence for early warning systems and the ability to fight a long-range weapon of mass destruction threat from Iran and Iraq. Arguing for the package, Sneh said that if a peace deal is reached, a new strategic reality would take root in the Mid-East. "It will be easier, …cheaper… and safer to protect U.S. interests," he stated. It will be, "a region with a different equation." Regarding negotiations with the Palestinians, Sneh graded Yasir Arafat’s commitment to fight terror a B+ and said that Israel’s positions "are not irreconcilable with Palestinian aspirations." Turning to the Syrian track, Sneh said that unfortunately Assad gives Hezbollah a "license to kill." He said that Syria wants to negotiate, but they want Israel to come to the table "weak and bleeding. We cannot accept that," he stated. Addressing Syria’s "verbal attacks" which equate Israel with the Nazis, and other inflammatory statements regarding the Holocaust, he maintained that if the Syrians are serious about peace with Israel than they must "stop these verbal attacks that are an insult to our people." Thanking the hundreds of Jewish community leaders from across the United States who are participating in the JCPA’s annual plenum, Sneh said, "The Jewish state is a sound fact no one can ignore. We’ve made them understand that we came to stay. We achieved it through a long and tough struggle…We rebuffed aggression after aggression…. In this struggle we were not alone; you were with us. The American Jewish community is a partner in the victory we will achieve hopefully in the next year."
### The Jewish Council for Public Affairs is the public affairs arm of the organized Jewish community and serves as the national coordinating and advisory body for the 13 national and 122 local agencies comprising the field of Jewish community relations
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