February 17
TZIPI Livni, who is bidding to become Israel's next prime minister, says the Jewish state has no option but to continue with internationally-backed peace talks with the Palestinians.
"We have to continue with the peace plan launched at Annapolis," Livni told a conference of US Jewish leaders in Jerusalem on Monday.
"If we don't continue with the plan, we will not be able to count on the support of the international community against Iran, Hezbollah (Lebanon's Shi'ite militia) or Hamas (the Islamist rulers of the Gaza Strip)," said Livni, who as foreign minister has been at the forefront of the negotiations.
Direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks were relaunched after a seven-year hiatus at a conference in Annapolis, Maryland, in November 2007 with the US aim of securing a deal before the end of George W Bush's presidency in January this year.
The plan is backed by the so-called Middle East diplomatic quartet comprising Russia, the European Union, the United Nations and the United States.
Negotiations were to have focused on core issues such as the status of Jerusalem, the borders of a future Palestinian state and the fate of Palestinian refugees, but little progress has been made.
The process has now stalled completely as Livni and her hawkish right-wing rival Benjamin Netanyahu, the two front-runners after a parliamentary election on February 10, bid separately to form a workable governing coalition.
"The majority of Israelis understand that if Israel wants to remain an independent Jewish state, in the end the territory will have to be divided," Livni said.
"We can carry out negotiations while still fighting against terrorism."
The Annapolis peace process envisages separate Palestinian and Jewish states co-existing peacefully side by side.
Livni repeated her views later in an interview with Channel 2 television.
"My government will make progress in the peace process," she said.
"I will not be associated with freezing this process, and I am ready if necessary to join the opposition."
Livni's centrist Kadima party has called for a power-sharing deal with Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party amid furious haggling in the wake of the tight parliamentary election.
Although Kadima won 28 seats in last week's general election, one more than the Likud, Netanyahu is widely tipped to become the next prime minister.
Under Israeli law, the person charged with trying to form a new government is not necessarily the leader of the largest party but the one with the best chances of cobbling together a coalition capable of securing a majority in the 120-seat Knesset.
Livni's Kadima party said on Sunday that if Livni is not prime minister, it would rather consider going into opposition.
Netanyahu has indicated that Middle East peace talks should focus on improving Palestinian daily life before negotiations on core issues can begin.
When he became Israel's youngest premier in 1996, Netanyahu put the brakes on the peace process with the Palestinians, in part by authorising a major expansion of Jewish settlements.
TZIPI Livni, who is bidding to become Israel's next prime minister, says the Jewish state has no option but to continue with internationally-backed peace talks with the Palestinians.
"We have to continue with the peace plan launched at Annapolis," Livni told a conference of US Jewish leaders in Jerusalem on Monday.
"If we don't continue with the plan, we will not be able to count on the support of the international community against Iran, Hezbollah (Lebanon's Shi'ite militia) or Hamas (the Islamist rulers of the Gaza Strip)," said Livni, who as foreign minister has been at the forefront of the negotiations.
Direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks were relaunched after a seven-year hiatus at a conference in Annapolis, Maryland, in November 2007 with the US aim of securing a deal before the end of George W Bush's presidency in January this year.
The plan is backed by the so-called Middle East diplomatic quartet comprising Russia, the European Union, the United Nations and the United States.
Negotiations were to have focused on core issues such as the status of Jerusalem, the borders of a future Palestinian state and the fate of Palestinian refugees, but little progress has been made.
The process has now stalled completely as Livni and her hawkish right-wing rival Benjamin Netanyahu, the two front-runners after a parliamentary election on February 10, bid separately to form a workable governing coalition.
"The majority of Israelis understand that if Israel wants to remain an independent Jewish state, in the end the territory will have to be divided," Livni said.
"We can carry out negotiations while still fighting against terrorism."
The Annapolis peace process envisages separate Palestinian and Jewish states co-existing peacefully side by side.
Livni repeated her views later in an interview with Channel 2 television.
"My government will make progress in the peace process," she said.
"I will not be associated with freezing this process, and I am ready if necessary to join the opposition."
Livni's centrist Kadima party has called for a power-sharing deal with Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party amid furious haggling in the wake of the tight parliamentary election.
Although Kadima won 28 seats in last week's general election, one more than the Likud, Netanyahu is widely tipped to become the next prime minister.
Under Israeli law, the person charged with trying to form a new government is not necessarily the leader of the largest party but the one with the best chances of cobbling together a coalition capable of securing a majority in the 120-seat Knesset.
Livni's Kadima party said on Sunday that if Livni is not prime minister, it would rather consider going into opposition.
Netanyahu has indicated that Middle East peace talks should focus on improving Palestinian daily life before negotiations on core issues can begin.
When he became Israel's youngest premier in 1996, Netanyahu put the brakes on the peace process with the Palestinians, in part by authorising a major expansion of Jewish settlements.
Source: The Australian
Posts
