MIDDLE EAST: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Isreal is open to relaunch peace talks with Syria to ease tension

Record ID: 279001

  • Title: MIDDLE EAST: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Isreal is open to relaunch peace talks with Syria to ease tension
  • Date: 8th February 2010
  • Summary: JERUSALEM (FEBRUARY 7, 2010) (REUTERS) WIDE OF ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU ARRIVING FOR WEEKLY CABINET MEETING ISRAELI MINISTER OF DEFENCE EHUD BARAK ARRIVING FOR MEETING MORE OF MINISTERS ENTERING MEETING WIDE OF ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU CONVENING WEEKLY CABINET MEETING CLOSE OF NETANYAHU (SOUNDBITE) (Hebrew) ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER BE
  • Embargoed: 23rd February 2010 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVA6GKVYKLF0WTSX7M4VOQEEXDJT
  • Story Text: Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the Jewish state is open to relaunch peace talks with Syria, to ease tension between the two states after threats and accusations were exchanged last week.
    Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reassured Syria on Sunday (February 7) that Israel sought peace after his fiery foreign minister last week threatened to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in any future war.
    Avigdor Lieberman's remarks further increased tension between the two states after recent exchange of accusations' despite Netanyahu's oft-repeated call for Assad to negotiate peace with Israel.
    At the start of a weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, Netanyahu addressed the issue and assured that Israel is interested in peace with two main considerations: having no prior conditions to any peace talks and reaching a deal to ensure Israel's security.
    "We want peace that will last for years, tens of years and even generations and that is it is essential to achieve these components and security foremost. I hope that we are facing the renewal of negotiations with the Palestinians. We are open to renew the process with the Syrians as well. The way and mechanism of negotiations are also important to us but not as important as the two principles I just spoke about, both in the Palestinian and Syrian fronts," Netanyahu said.
    Assad had accused Israel on Wednesday of pushing for war, drawing an angry response from Lieberman in a speech near Tel Aviv.
    Lieberman, known for his tough rhetoric, said that Assad had "crossed a red line". Some lawmakers urged Netanyahu to dismiss him for threatening Syria, a northern enemy that has talked peace with Israel in the past.
    Despite a spike in war talk in recent days, there have been no signs that military tensions have risen between Israel and Syria.
    But in a bid to minimise the fallout from Lieberman's remarks, the prime minister's office issued a statement saying Netanyahu told his cabinet secretary to phone ministers and "ask them to avoid speaking in the media about Syria".
    Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak told members of his Labour party that instead of "exchanging verbal blows", Israel and Syria should "sit together and talk through our envoys."
    Assad had spoken out after Barak, sounding a cautionary note, said earlier this week that "the absence of an agreement with Syria could lead to armed conflict that could develop into all-out war".
    Indirect negotiations between Syria and Israel, mediated by Turkey, broke down during the Israeli invasion of Gaza in December 2008.
    Barak, as prime minister, held peace talks with Syria in 2000 that faltered over the future of the Golan Heights, a strategic Syrian plateau captured by Israel in a 1967 war. As defence chief, he has been pushing for new negotiations.
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