Bush, Powell & Annan reax to Middle East violence.

(19 May 2001) Washington, DC May 18, 2001 Pool 1. Mid shot - Bush greeting EP3 crew members 2. SOUNDBITE: (English) George W. Bush, U.S. President "It is essential that the leaders in the Middle East speak out clearly against violence. We must break the cycle of violence in order to begin meaningful discussions about any kind of political settlement. My administration will continue to work with the parties involved, reminding folks that violence will not lead to peace, obviously. Violence will make it so difficult for there to be any political settlement." Washington, DC May 18, 2001 APTN 3. Wide Colin Powell and Igor Ivanov, Russia's Foreign Minister enter 4. Cutaway press 5. Wide Powell 6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Colin Powell, US Secretary of State "I've spoken to leaders around the region and what we need now more than anything else is unconditional secession of violence on the part of all. Then things can start to happen. Then we can start to put in place security coordination, methods and mechanisms to keep it down and to get it going down and down and down. Then we can begin confidence building measures and the building of connections so the level of trust is built up. And when that level of trust starts to take hold again and there's a cease fire for some period of time, a cooling off period, then we can get back to negotiation." New York, NY May 18, 2001 Pool 8. Wide United Nations meeting 9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General "I am deeply disturbed by the disproportionate Israeli response to the suicide attack. While I have repeatedly made clear my utter condemnation of terrorism from whatever quarter - and do so again today - I can only regard this response as excessive and misdirected. Its effect will inevitably be to increase bitterness even further on the Palestinian side. 10. Wide United Nations meeting STORYLINE: US President Bush decried the new intensity of Mideast violence Friday, after an Islamic suicide bomber attacked a crowded shopping mall in Israel. Bush called on Middle East leaders to denounce the violence during an Oval Office ceremony for the crew of the U.S. spy plane that went down in China last month. He also reiterated his administration's commitment to promoting peace. The US Secretary of State Colin Powell also had harsh words for the leaders in the Middle East. He called for an unconditional end to the violence before any negotiations could continue. Meanwhile, in New York, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in an unusually strong statement called for restraint, an end to violence and the resumption of peace negotiations. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...