Vatican urges U.N. to use 'road map' to move toward Middle East peace

Published: 2003-11-04

UNITED NATIONS (CNS) -- A Vatican statement to the United Nations Nov. 3 called for use of the "road map" as a way to move toward an Israeli-Palestinian settlement. Msgr. Francis Chullikatt, an official of the Vatican's U.N. mission, said "the present conflict in the Middle East will find a lasting solution only when there are two independent and sovereign states living side by side in peace and security." "It is incumbent upon both parties, assisted by the international community, to endorse the road map as a tool of negotiation and confidence building," he said. The "road map" is the plan designed to produce the two-state solution proposed by President Bush in his speech to the United Nations last year.

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