The Palestinian Authority yesterday reacted with disappointment to US criticism of its peace efforts by accusing Washington of turning a blind eye on Israel's moves towards alternatives to the "roadmap" blueprint.

"There is great Palestinian disappointment with the lack of serious US efforts to implement the roadmap," Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's top adviser said in reaction to comments by US Secretary of State Colin Powell.

Powell had charged Thursday that Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei's government was not doing enough to meet its obligations under the roadmap, which was endorsed by both sides in June and is internationally supported.

"I hope he can build a little momentum to get a little more pressure from the Egyptians and others to place on the Palestinian Authority," Powell told reporters at a State Department news conference.

"They have to get going," he said of the Palestinian Authority.

Nabil Abu Rudeina countercharged that Israel was not delivering on its pledge to implement the roadmap and that US President George W Bush was allowing Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to press on with unilateral measures.

"The Americans are giving Israel the opportunity to continue their aggression and the construction of the wall," he said in reference to the controversial barrier Israel is building to separate itself fromn the West Bank.

"We want to see US actions to make sure the roadmap is implemented and not just words. But so far the Americans are letting Israel walk away from the roadmap," he added.

Sharon recently floated a "disengagement" plan, which includes the construction of the barrier, the withdrawal from some settlements and the consolidation of others.

The Israeli government says it is still committed to the roadmap and that these unilateral measures would only be implemented if the Palestinians fail to keep their own promises.

"All sides have made important commitments, and the US will strive to see these commitments fulfilled," Bush said in Jordan last June, when the roadmap was officially endorsed.

Since then, the blueprint has fallen by the wayside, with the Palestinians failing to impose an end to violence and Israel to dismantle settlement outposts.

According to the roadmap, a Palestinian state with provisional borders should have been established by last week, yet the prospects of even resuming bilateral talks appears more distant than ever. – Sapa-AFP.