- Title: ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS/SARKOZY Sarkozy condemns boycotting Israel
- Date: 8th June 2015
- Summary: JERUSALEM (JUNE 8, 2015) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** EXTERIOR OF ISRAEL'S PRESIDENT, REUVEN RIVLIN'S RESIDENCE SIGN NEAR RESIDENCE READING IN HEBREW, ARABIC AND ENGLISH: 'PRESIDENT'S RESIDENCE' FORMER FRENCH PRESIDENT, NICOLAS SARKOZY, ARRIVING AT MEETING HALL ISRAELI AND FRENCH FLAGS AT SCENE SARKOZY SHAKING HANDS WITH RIVLIN FRENCH FLAG (SOUNDBITE)
- Embargoed: 23rd June 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: West bank
- City:
- Country: Palestinian Territories
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVAEFX5HIKLD0ZR0V1JG8MRQOFQX
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Former French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, on a visit to Israel and the West Bank, condemned on Monday (June 8) any support for boycotting Israel's democracy.
Sarkozy met with Israel's President, Reuven Rivlin, at his Residence in Jerusalem early on Monday before going to the West Bank city of Ramallah to meet with the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas.
"We come here as friends, to a country that I love greatly. I would like to say how thoroughly we condemn, without equivocation, any backing for a boycott aimed at Israel's democracy," Sarkozy said in French during the meeting.
Reuven Rivlin told Sarkozy and the journalists who attended the meeting that the international pressure on Israel will not stop the tragedy between Israel and the Palestinians.
"I really think that words should be said that boycotts or pressure, international pressure, appealing to the international organizations could not bring us to the possibility of bringing to an end this tragedy, only by tight negotiations we could achieve that," Rivlin said.
Sarkozy also visited the West Bank city of Ramallah to meet with the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the headquarters of the Palestinian Authority.
Sarkozy is expected to give a speech at the annual Herzliya conference in Tel Aviv later this evening.
While neither Sarkozy or Rivlin specified which boycotts they might be referring to, their remarks came after a furore over remarks by the French CEO of Orange, Stephane Richard, who said last week that the 25 percent state-owned group planned to terminate an arrangement with Israel's Partner Communications and that he would do so "tomorrow morning" if the contracts allowed.
Israel protested to France after the remarks drew accusations that Orange was bending to a pro-Palestinian boycott movement.
Richard later issued a statement to say Orange did not support any form of boycott and had no plans to quit Israel. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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