Palestinian Prime Minister-designate Mr Ahmed Qurie told a Palestinian newspaper thatthe White House stance on Palestinian President Yasser Arafatwas "regrettable" and harmful to a peace process with Israel.
The remarks in the Palestinians'second largest daily, al-Ayyam, appeared to widen a gap betweenWashington, which has attempted to sideline Mr Arafat, and thePalestinian Authority on how to move forward with Israel on a"road map" peace plan derailed by ongoing violence.
On Thursday, US President George W. Bush said Arafat "hasfailed as a leader" and is responsible for stalling the MiddleEast peace road map, which envisages a Palestinian state by 2005and an end to tit-for-tat attacks.
"This is regrettable and does not serve the peace process.(Arafat) is an elected leader and represents the will of thePalestinian people," Mr Qurie was quoted as telling al-Ayyam."We hope that President Bush and the American administrationrespect the will of the Palestinian people," he added.
Mr Arafat appointed Mr Qurie prime minister after Mr Mahmoud Abbasresigned from the post over what he called "obstructions" byMr Arafat and Israel to his peace moves.
Next week, Mr Qurie is expected to form the new Palestiniancabinet, which officials say is likely to include a supporter ofthe militant group Hamas and a moderate favoured by the US.