Palestinian PM seeks aid for embryo state

Salam Fayyad's 65-page programme proposes a generous tax regime for foreign investors in a Palestinian state, which he says could be made ready by 2011.

The programme appeared to be a wish-list rather than a detailed blueprint. Peace talks with Israel, in which Palestinians seek a state on Israeli-occupied land, have been suspended since December.

"We need continued support by the international community," Fayyad told reporters after introducing the document.

The Palestinian Authority is heavily dependent on foreign assistance for most of its budget. In 2008, it received 1.8 billion in budget support.

The Fayyad plan is short on detail, but setting out such objectives is a departure from Palestinian policy over the past 15 years, which focused exclusively on negotiations with Israel rather than building institutions; Kazinform cites China Daily. See www.news.chinadaily.com.cn for full version.