MIDDLE EAST: Mr Ahmed Korei, the speaker of the Palestinian legislative council, formally agreed last night to become the new Palestinian Prime Minister following the resignation of Mr Mahmoud Abbas, according to Palestinian officials.
However, Mr Korei appeared to hold to his initial demand that both the US and EU had to guarantee their support by seeking a great level of co-operation from Israel in the implementation of the so-called road map to peace.
Mr Korei was chosen by the Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, after Mr Abbas resigned, frustrated after a protracted power struggle with Mr Arafat. Mr Korei's appointment must be approved by the Palestinian Authority, which is expected to meet shortly.
After meeting Mr Arafat in his battered compound in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Mr Korei expressed his reservations. "The problem is knowing whether Israel wants to change its hostile attitude," he said.
"It is whether they want to recognise President Arafat as the legitimate leader of the Palestinian people or not. If they do not want to change their attitude towards us, we do not need a government nor a prime minister."
Earlier, the EU issued a statement of welcome for Mr Korei, who is also known as Abu Ala, and an American diplomat who also held talks with him hailed his appointment.
Even the Israeli government, which had at the weekend indicated it would not deal with any new Arafat-appointed prime minister, yesterday said that it would judge Mr Korei by his actions.
Formally, Mr Korei has three weeks to win Palestinian parliamentary approval for a new cabinet, but Mr Arafat has asked him to try and assemble his ministerial team within 48 hours.
And the 65-year-old Mr Korei appears to share the sense of urgency. Even as he was telling reporters in early afternoon that he had not yet accepted the nomination and was demanding "guarantees" of support from the United States, Europe, Israel and the rest of the Palestinian leadership, he had privately confirmed he was taking the job and had begun discussing ministerial appointments.
Far more extrovert and good-natured than the self-effacing Mr Abbas, Mr Korei also appears to be a better politician. Yesterday he stressed that, if he were to succeed, Israel would have to "change the ways of dealing with Yasser Arafat, the elected president, because I cannot go [forward\] without his support".
There is little prospect of the Israeli government radically changing its attitude to the reviled Mr Arafat. But Mr Korei's reference to Mr Arafat's status will have been warmly noted by the Palestinian Authority president, who felt threatened by Mr Abbas but recognises that Mr Korei will not seek to usurp him.
Mr Korei has also worked closely with Mr Arafat in the delicate fabric of relations between the president's office and the parliament. The new Prime Minister's comments may also serve as a warning to Israeli government ministers to drop the notion of sending Mr Arafat into exile.
Mr Korei also scores over Mr Abbas in that, as the [now outgoing\] speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council, he is an elected politician, with a genuine constituency in his Jerusalem area district. The unelected Mr Abbas was widely perceived by ordinary Palestinians as an American or Israeli-installed stooge.
Most members of the current Israeli government of the Prime Minister, Mr Ariel Sharon, of course, regard the Oslo peace process as having been fundamentally misconceived, because they doubt Mr Arafat's readiness to make peace with Israel. By extension, therefore, many of them yesterday dismissed Mr Korei's appointment as meaningless.
"The man who is pulling the strings and controlling everything is one person, and it's Yasser Arafat," said the Health Minister, Mr Danny Naveh.
But the official Israeli position was less negative, with the Foreign Minister, Mr Silvan Shalom, saying the new Prime Minister would be "judged by his actions".
Specifically, Israel and the US want the Palestinian Authority to act forcefully to disarm and dismantle Hamas and other extremist groups. Mr Korei indicated, however, he would not be able to make progress on his own. The US, Europe, Mr Arafat and the rest of the PA, and Israel all had to help change the climate.