HAARETZ Newspaper in Israel - The Quartet, which comprises members from
Russia, the United States, the UN and the European Union, called Israel and the
Palestinians to renew peace negotiations in order to achieve a two-state
solution within 24 months. The members met in Moscow on Friday in an effort to
defuse the latest crisis in peace efforts between Israel and the Palestinians.
"The Quartet believes these negotiations should lead to a settlement,
negotiated between the parties within 24 months, that ends the
occupation that began in 1967 and results in the emergence of an
independent, democratic and viable Palestinian state living side by side in
peace and security with Israel and its other neighbors," said a joint statement
read by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
"The Quartet reiterates that Arab-Israeli peace and the establishment of a
peaceful state of Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza is in the
fundamental interest of the parties, of all states in the region, and of the
international community," said the statement. "In this regard the Quartet calls
on all states to support dialogues between the parties."
The mediators also called on Israel following their meeting to freeze
all settlement activities and denounced its recent decision to approve
construction of 1.600 new homes in East Jerusalem.
"The Quartet urges the government of Israel to freeze all settlement
activities ... and to refrain from demolitions and evictions," according to the
statement read by Ban. The statement also condemned Israel's approval of the
construction in East Jerusalem.
At the start of the talks, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said: "All of
us today hope to arrive at some common conclusions which will help to promote
the beginning of a dialogue between the two sides."
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in Moscow, discussed steps to
improve the outlook for Israeli-Palestinian peace by telephone with
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday.
Netanyahu's spokesman Nir Chefetz said the Israeli leader had proposed
some "mutual confidence-building steps" that both Israel and the
Palestinians could take in the West Bank. He declined to spell these out.
Clinton met her Russian counterpart Lavrov, UN Secretary General Ban
Ki-moon, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and Quartet
Representative Tony Blair over a closed dinner on Thursday evening
before Friday's formal meeting.
No details of that meeting were disclosed.
"We intend to have a very broad-ranging discussion with our Quartet
partners," Clinton said at a joint news conference with Lavrov on
Thursday. "Our goals remain the same. It is to re-launch negotiations
between the Israelis and the Palestinians on a path that will lead to a
two-state solution."
The Quartet was formed in 2002 in Spain to assist in mediating an end to
escalating violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It last met on the
margins of the UN General Assembly in September.
But its results so far have been meagre, leading some analysts to
dismiss it as an expensive club for diplomats.
Moscow had originally hoped to organise a full-scale international
conference on the Middle East this year but the lack of progress on
Israeli-Palestinian peace talks has forced Russia to settle instead for hosting
a quartet meeting.
Biden: East Jerusalem decision designed to undermine peace process
Meanwhile, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has called Israel's decision to
approve 1,600 new homes in East Jerusalem week "provocative", adding that it
was "obviously designed by some in Israel to undermine a peace process George
Mitchell finally got - our negotiator - finally got back on track."
In an interview with ABC's Nightline which will air on Friday night,
Biden reiterated that "Israel's security is undeniably in our interest
to make sure it is absolutely secure" and Washington and Jerusalem to
"get over" the recent tensions that flared in response to the announcement.
"And so the message is: We've got to get over this," Biden said.
"Granted, I condemn the announcement made by that planning council.
...The irony is even that planning council acknowledging not a single new unit
can be built at least for a year and maybe never will be built, it was
provocative."
The Interior Ministry's decision was made public during Biden's visit to Israel
last week, a move the United States termed an "insult" as it came amid U.S.
efforts to see Middle East peace negotiations renewed.
In the interview, Biden denied reports that he had told Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel's policy on settlements puts U.S. troops at risk.
"No, I never said that," Biden told ABC
---UPDATED:
[Hard right-winger Avigdor] Lieberman on Quartet call: You can't makeartificial
peace
FOREIGN Minister Avigdor Lieberman responded Friday to the Quartet
of Middle East peace mediators' call to relaunch Israeli-Palestinian
peace negotiations, saying that peace is not something which can be
created artificially and with unrealistic timetables.
"Peace will be established through actions and not by force," Lieberman told
Belgium's Jewish community ahead of his scheduled talks with the ministers of
several European nations.
"The Quartet is ignoring the last 16 years of Israeli attempts, and is
giving the Palestinians the impression that they can achieve their
demands by continuing to refuse direct negotiations under false
pretexts," Lieberman said.
"The Israeli government has made many significant gestures. Now it's the
Palestinian's turn to prove that they are really interested in
negotiations," Lieberman added.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1157628.html
