U.S. calls Arab summit declaration "very positive"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States welcomed the endorsement by Arab leaders on Thursday of a 5-year-old peace initiative to end the Arab-Israeli conflict.

"That is something that we view as very positive," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack when asked about the outcome of the Arab summit and endorsement of the 2002 plan drawn up at a previous summit in Beirut.

The plan, parts of which have been rejected by Israel, offers the Jewish state normal ties with all Arab countries in return for its withdrawal from land occupied in the 1967 Middle East war, the creation of a Palestinian state and a "just solution" for Palestinians displaced in 1948.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pressed Arab leaders during a visit to the region over the past week to follow up on the Arab plan and use it as the basis to engage with the Israelis.

Despite Israeli reservations, Rice said she had not asked Arab leaders to amend the plan.

"We encourage them, however, to use it as a point of active diplomacy and as a way of energizing the push for peace in the Middle East. Their efforts and those of others have an important role to play," said McCormack.

McCormack declined further comment on the summit's endorsement of the plan until he had more details but said Rice wanted Arab states to play a more active role in encouraging peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

During her four-day visit, Rice held separate talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, with both sides agreeing to meet twice monthly.

But any substantive talks on so-called "final status" questions, the most difficult to resolve, would not be on the agenda for now.