- Title: ISRAEL: Israeli and Palestinian leaders hold most serious talks in 7 years
- Date: 14th January 2008
- Summary: (W3) JERUSALEM (JANUARY 14, 2008) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF HOTEL VEHICLE CARRYING HEAD OF PALESTINIAN NEGOTIATION TEAM AHMED QUREI ARRIVING AT HOTEL HEAD OF PALESTINIAN NEGOTIATING TEAM AHMED QUREI ENTERING HOTEL
- Embargoed: 29th January 2008 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Israel
- Country: Israel
- Topics: International Relations
- Reuters ID: LVA2YJA7PS34AWMT8J0D00SELEQK
- Story Text: Israel and the Palestinians open their most serious peace negotiations in seven years, the so-called final status talks aimed at creating a Palestinian state, seven weeks after they were annnounced at a U.S.-sponsored conference in Annapolis, Maryland.
Israel and the Palestinians on Monday (January 14) opened their most serious peace talks in seven years at the behest of U.S. President George W.
Bush, despite differences between the two sides over what they hope to achieve.
It took nearly seven weeks to start so-called final-status talks, announced at a U.S.-sponsored conference in Annapolis, Maryland, underscoring the hurdles Bush faces in getting a Palestinian statehood deal in his final year in office.
Monday's negotiations followed Bush's first presidential visit to Israel and the occupied West Bank last week, when he set the goal of signing a peace treaty in 2008 and encouraged both sides to begin talking in earnest.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and former Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie, the chief negotiators, launched the talks that will deal with issues such as borders and the fate of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert arrived at parliament's Foreign and Defence Committee, while in the corridors, parliament members raised different views with regards to the parties' chances to achieve a final agreement by the end of this year - a goal set by Bush.
"I would urge the parties to do everything in their power to be able to, within a year, reach a good conclusion to this talks," said Kolet Avital, a Knesset member of the left-wing Labour party.
But fellow legislator, and right-wing Likud member, Silvan Shalom, claimed that Olmert and does not have the required support needed to implement further withdrawals from occupied land.
"Olmert has no mandate from his own coalition, because the major parties will quit in a short time, and the others that are still there are totally rejecting any move forward that means to withdrawal from the West Bank and Jerusalem," said Shalom.
Substantive talks on issues like Jerusalem could put Olmert's governing coalition in jeopardy. The right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu party has threatened to quit, possibly this week.
During a meeting with Canadian Foreign Minister Maxime Bernier in Jerusalem, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni confirmed she launched talks with Qurie on core statehood issues.
"We are going to discuss today of course also the bilateral relationship (with Canada), but also the situation in the region, the threats that we see, the ongoing negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians and my former meeting was with abu Ala (Ahmed Qurei), the chief negotiator on the Palestinian side. So I have a lot to share with you also on this," Livni told Bernier.
In the West Bank City of Ramallah, where Abbas's government holds sway, Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said a final agreement was achievable.
"I believe now it's time for decisions by leaders, more than negotiations. I believe the parameters are defined. I believe it's doable and I believe, if you look at the road map, it's specifying the objectives of the peace process to end the Israeli occupation that began at 1967. We know it's going to be a two-state solution and I hope that leaders on both sides will deliver the decisions required to make the year 2008 a year of peace,"
Erekat said after arriving in Ramallah after talks ended in Jerusalem.
"It's the start of talks, in a good spirit," Qurie told reporters after the 90-minute meeting in a Jerusalem hotel.
An Israeli official said before the session it was unlikely Livni would be prepared to begin discussing core issues in detail at such an early stage.
It is unclear how Olmert and Abbas, two politically weak leaders, can reach a deal in that timeframe, let alone put it into effect.
Israeli officials said Olmert was seeking a deal that would outline a "framework" for a future Palestinian state with implementation delayed until the Palestinians can ensure Israel's security.
Abbas wants a final peace treaty enabling him to declare a state by the end of the year.
Abbas has little power beyond the West Bank since Hamas Islamists seized control of the Gaza Strip in June. Hamas, shunned by Israel and the West, dismiss talks on any statehood issues.
"We consider that such meetings provide coverage for the occupation in order for them to continue with their crimes against the Palestinians people. We consider the holding of such a meeting in the midst of the continued Zionist crimes, last of which was the killing of three near the house of the Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh last night, this meeting is a crime against the Palestinian people. Qurie and his team in Ramallah should stop immediately from holding such meetings which hurts the Palestinians interests," Hamas leader Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters in Gaza City.
But Erekat, a prominent Fatah leader, vowed that any future statehood agreement achieved between Israel and the Palestinians, would include Gaza.
"You can rest assured that President Abbas or any Palestinian official is not even thinking of a Palestinian state without Gaza being part of it," he said.
The first final-status talks since 2001 were supposed to begin soon after November's Annapolis conference. But the Palestinians demanded Israel first commit to ceasing all settlement activity, as stipulated by a 2003 peace "road map".
Under U.S. pressure, Olmert responded with a de-facto halt to new construction in settlements. But he has not called off plans to build hundreds of homes in a settlement near Jerusalem Israelis call Har Homa and Palestinians Jabal Abu Ghneim.
Olmert said Bush had assured him during his visit that the Palestinians would need to meet their security obligations under the road map before any peace deal was implemented.
Israeli officials said Livni and Qurie planned to meet regularly.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Aryeh Mekel said their discussions will be "intensive". - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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