Following is the text of Ambassador Cunningham's remarks:

Thank you, Mr. President. Just a little more than two weeks ago the Council took a very important step when it adopted Resolution 1397 -- others have referred to its importance -- and that resolution contained a number of valuable elements. Among other things, it called for an immediate halt to the terror and violence.

That call has been ignored by those who would obstruct efforts to achieve a cease-fire and work toward peace. The few optimistic signs that developed in the last two weeks have been endangered, once again, by terror. We should be perfectly clear in our discussion tonight: it is terrorism, repeated, brutal acts of terrorism, perpetrated against innocent civilians by those who oppose peace, that has brought the situation to the current extremely grave, dangerous state. Both Israeli and Palestinian hopes for a peaceful future are under attack by this terror. As Secretary Powell said earlier today, "Once again, terrorism that targets innocent civilians has dealt a serious blow to the effort to achieve a cease-fire and to find a political solution to the crisis in the Middle East. ... Terrorists have set back the vision of the Palestinian people for a state that would live in peace side by side with Israel." We condemn the acts of terrorism perpetrated by Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and we reiterate our calls on Chairman Arafat to bring the perpetrators -- and their supporters -- to justice. All those who support peace must reinforce this message from whatever region. There is no other way forward.

In recent weeks, there was cause for some guarded optimism. Last fall, President Bush set out his vision at the United Nations for a Palestinian state living side by side in peace with a Jewish state. We saw positive reaction to the speech that Secretary Powell gave in Louisville. The United Nations passed an important Security Council resolution, 1397, introduced by the United States. The resolution went through the Security Council with a vote of 14 to zero and only one abstention. This resolution importantly set out a vision for the future and established an outline for progress. The Arab Summit in Beirut earlier this week, while it did not provide a complete solution, laid out a vision that was put forward by Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia and was embraced by all of the Arab nations. We strongly welcomed that. Prime Minister Sharon, in recent weeks, showed flexibility -- on conditions he had previously held to -- with respect to what it would take to get started on the Tenet work plan. Both sides welcomed General Zinni's return to get the work plan started, which would then lead to the Mitchell process and the political solution -- the political discussion and negotiation -- that all of us are hoping for. Vice President Cheney traveled in the region and was prepared to see Chairman Arafat if circumstances had permitted. So, there was some reason for guarded optimism and let's be clear about what has brought it all to a halt -- terrorism on the part of those that targeted innocent civilians with the explicit purpose of destroying hopes for peace.

The United States is gravely concerned at the very dangerous situation in Ramallah. We deplore the killing and wounding of innocent Palestinian civilians, just as we condemn the killing of innocent Israeli civilians as a result of terrorist attacks. We understand that Israel has a right to self-defense. But we call on Prime Minister Sharon and his government to carefully consider the consequences of their actions. Chairman Arafat is the leader of the Palestinian people, and his leadership is now and will be central to any meaningful effort to restore calm. We have made clear to the Israeli government that he should not be harmed.

The Security Council, my government, and the international community at large have endorsed the vision -- of two states -- Israel and Palestine -- living side by side in peace. That vision must not be defeated by a small minority dedicated solely to death and destruction. There is a positive way forward, as the Secretary General has explained. We must move forward, and the cycle of violent action and reaction in the Middle East must stop. The United States is pressing to bring about a cease-fire and General Zinni remains in the region engaged in that very effort. Despite the events of this past few days, he will work hard to get the parties to implement the Tenet security work plan, and to move further toward a resumption of a political process. We urge both parties to cooperate fully with General Zinni to put in place immediately a lasting cease-fire, and to take the steps that would bring tangible benefits to both peoples. This is the only solution to the crisis before us. Thank you, Mr. President.

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