A conference of potential donors to the Palestinian Authority meets in Paris Monday.
Condoleezza Rice, the U.S. secretary of state, will attend the conference, aimed at bolstering her recent drive to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
“This conference is an opportunity for the international community to pledge tangible and generous assistance to the economic development of Palestinian society and to provide maximal resources for the Palestinian Authority’s program of institution building in preparation for statehood,” said a State Department release.
The Bush administration has called on Arab states to substantially increase ttheir commitments.
The Palestinians reportedly are seeking $5.6 billion. The United States pledged $270 million to the Palestinian Authority this year and recently asked Congress to approve an additional $410 billion.
