David Miliband on Palestine

British Foreign Minister David Miliband lays out his positions on Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinians, and the future of any peace process.

Miliband has been getting a lot of advice on foreign policy. He is known for having privately opposed the Iraq War, and was the only cabinet minister to call openly for an immediate ceasefire last summer when Israel attacked Lebanon.

Here, he calls on Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to find mechanisms to represent the whole Palestinian people. At the moment, Abbas controls only Fatah and the West Bank, while Gaza is in the hands of Hamas, his bitter rival.

Hamas won the January 2006 elections, but Abbas has essentially made a coup against it, with US and Israeli backing. Hamas declines to recognize Israel and has been implicated in ongoing terrorist operations against Israel.