Israel foiled peace talks, Abbas tells German minister

Feb 1, 2012, 16:05 GMT

Ramallah/Jerusalem - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel Wednesday of foiling efforts to restart direct peace negotiations, blaming it for refusing to recognise the borders of a Palestinian state and halt construction in its West Bank settlements.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for his part, said a settlement construction freeze should be discussed in negotiations, rather than a pre-condition.

Both men made their respective comments to visiting diplomats, who are in the region in an attempt to get the sides to resume peace talks.

Jordanian-brokered talks between Israel and the Palestinians, intended to set the stage for direct peace negotiations between the sides, ended last week. Abbas is scheduled to consult with the Arab League on Saturday, before making a final decision on whether to continue the dialogue.

Meeting German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle in Ramallah, Abbas laid the blame for the suspension of the Amman talks on 'Israeli intransigence.'

The official Palestinian Wafa news agency quoted him telling Westerwelle that Israel's 'refusal to recognize the borders of the Palestinian state and to halt settlements in the Palestinian territories blocked the way of all international efforts to revive the peace process and start direct negotiations.'

He told Westerwelle that he was willing to return to the table, once Israel committed on the issues of borders and halting construction in its West Bank settlements. Wafa did not report on Westerwelle's remarks.

Abbas is under international pressure not to end the talks, which kicked off in Amman on January 3 and lasted five sessions before being suspended.

Netanyahu however told United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in Jerusalem that the settlement issue 'is a part of the negotiations, it can't be a precondition.'

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who met Ban separately, accused the Palestinians of not being interested in advancing peace talks, but wanting to sabotage them, in an attempt to justify further unilateral moves at the United Nations.

A Palestinian attempt - opposed by Israel and the United States - to become a member state of the UN failed last year, when it became clear there was not a majority in the Security Council in favour of such a step.

After meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas late Wednesday in Ramallah, Ban called on Palestinians and Israelis to continue in the negotiations they had started in Amman.

He said in a press conference with Abbas that 'a Palestinian state is long over due,' adding that 'the two-state solution can be achieved only through negotiations.'

Ban said Israel did not present anything that would encourage holding negotiations, but if it does, 'it would be possible to return to negotiations.'

He said Israel's creating facts on the ground through building settlements are not acceptable, stressing that the two-state solution should end the Israeli occupation and lead to the establishment of the independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with Jerusalem as its capital.

The Secretary-General kicked off his tour to Israel and the Palestinian territories Wednesday morning, by meeting President Shimon Peres.

He told a joint news conference after the parley that he was 'convinced' Israel could 'improve its strategic relations with its neighbours, including by constructively engaging in the peace process with the Palestinians.'

Peres said that the peace process was 'encountering natural differences.'

'It's not the end of it. It may take time, we shall have to struggle,' he said.