ISRAEL: UN Secretary General arrives in Israel for meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders

Record ID: 396200

  • Title: ISRAEL: UN Secretary General arrives in Israel for meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders
  • Date: 25th March 2007
  • Summary: (BN16) TEL AVIV, ISRAEL (MARCH 24, 2007) (AGENCY POOL) (++AUDIO AS INCOMING++) PLANE CARRYING UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY GENERAL BAN KI-MOON IN AIRPORT AIRPORT WORKER CARRIES ISRAEL AND UN FLAGS IN FRONT OF PLANE BAN SHAKING HANDS WITH ISRAELI OFFICIALS BAN SHAKING HANDS WITH ISRAELI DEFENCE MINISTER AMIR PERETZ BAN AND PERETZ AT STANDS (SOUNDBITE) (English) UN SECRETARY GE
  • Embargoed: 9th April 2007 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Israel
  • Country: Israel
  • Topics: International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVA1L93YDUY1BUYGZ2SA1TB06Z1E
  • Story Text: United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon arrived in Israel on Saturday (March 24) as part of his first tour of the Middle East.
    Ban arrived for a three days visit to the region to discuss peace process and security issues with Israeli and Palestinian leadership. He is scheduled to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem and the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the Palestinian territories.
    Arriving in Israel for his first official visit as U.N. chief, Ban said the United States, the Quartet of Middle East mediators and moderate Arab states were each pushing to restart long-stalled negotiations.
    "I believe this is a moment of gathering dynamism. contacts between Israeli and Palestinian leaders have resumed. The Quartet has become more active and hopes to meet soon in the region itself," Ban said upon arrival to Israel's Ben Gurion international airport.
    Ban was welcomed by Israeli Defence Minister Amir Peretz, and the two were set to hold a working meeting later in the evening.
    Peretz said they wild discuss number of security issues, including implementation of UN resolution 1701, the UNIFIL peacekeeping force in Lebanon, efforts to release kidnapped Israeli soldiers, situation in the Palestinian Authority and Iran's nuclear threat.
    "We expect that the decision about to be made about the sanctions on Iran, will indeed be accepted and implemented by the world, the free world, that does everything to end the nuclearization of Iran, which is a central issue for Israel. And we know that you are making a lot of effort to do so," Peretz said.
    Earlier, after meeting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo, Ban said he would not meet Palestinian Prime Minister Isamil Haniyeh of Hamas.
    The United Nations is part of the international Quartet, which is demanding that the Palestinian government recognise Israel, renounce violence and accept old agreements with Israel.
    Hamas has not accepted the conditions of the Quartet, which also includes the United States, Russia and the European Union.
    Mubarak is hosting US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Arab foreign ministers this weekend for discussions on the Middle East process.
    Rice is expected in Israel and the Palestinian territories beginning of the week.
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