First of all it is a victory for Israel that the Quartet proposal is without pre-conditions. But that’s only for the start of negotiations. What I expect is, that in the preliminary discussion parameters will be negotiated and we will be back to ’67 lines and other demands. Secondly what do deadlines mean. They have never been followed. Ted Belman
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Earlier on Sunday, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said that Israel should accept the Quartet’s proposal to begin negotiations without preconditions, in an interview with Israel Radio.
He said that even though he has reservations about the proposal, he hoped the Palestinians would respond to the initiative and begin serious dialogue with Israel.
The talks can open on any subject, Lieberman said, but from Israel’s standpoint the most important issue is security. The foreign minister said he hoped the Palestinians understood that it was in their interest to focus on the political process and to postpone the vote on their statehood bid.
He warned that any one-sided move would lead to an Israeli response.
“We must be grateful to the United States for their assistance in events surrounding the embassy in Cairo and [Obama’s] General Assembly speech, and we should therefore accept the International Quartet’s proposal, despite reservations,” Lieberman said.
“Mahmoud Abbas fled immediately after his speech, so that we could not, God forbid, negotiate,” the foreign minister said. “The Palestinians make up excuses not to negotiate all the time. Those who want excuses will find them. Mahmoud Abbas continues to demand the right of return, and if a Palestinian state is established in Judea and Samaria, he will still want to send the refugees to Israeli territory “.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas had said that he would not give his opinion of the Quartet’s proposal until he had returned to Ramallah and discussed its provisions with Palestinian leadership there. He reiterated the return to 1967 borders and halting of settlement construction as pre-conditions to negotiations.
The Middle East Quartet – the US, EU, Russia and the UN – has been trying for months to come up with a formula that would enable direct talks. Its formula was released on Friday afternoon, after Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas formally submitted a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon seeking full UN membership.
The Quartet statement urged the parties “to overcome the current obstacles and resume direct bilateral Israeli-Palestinian negotiations without delay or preconditions.”
Acknowledging that talks by themselves will not reestablish trust, the Quartet proposed the following: a “preparatory meeting” between the parties within a month to agree to an agenda and a “method of proceeding in the negotiation.” The two sides will commit that the objective is to “reach an agreement within a time frame agreed to by the parties but not longer than the end of 2012.”
Glick is right to warn;
The idea is that during that time, the US and the Europeans will place massive pressure on Israel to make more concessions to the Palestinians in order to restart stillborn negotiations. And the specter of a Security Council endorsement of Palestinian statehood will loom over Israel’s head the entire time like the Sword of Damocles.
Israel’s leaders with the ‘faces of dogs’ in the end days will try to give away the Land of Israel to its enemies. But this will be to no avail because HaSh-m will work through the Arab enemy to save Israel for the Jews. I have no doubts when it comes to the Word of HaSh-m.
“Mann tracht und G-tt lacht (Man plans and G-d laughs)”.
Israel should not bend to outside pressure by the U.S., The Quartet or Arabs. I think outsiders will have to bow to the will of the Jews. The Jews will not split Jerusalem and won’t agree to the right of return of Arab refugees. (Well, maybe terms could be worked out to also allow Jews the right of return to Arabia, who knows?)
Many Arabs in the Holy Land were workers who came to Israel to find jobs after Israel’s statehood was proclaimed. How much weight do they carry in negotiations? The Ottoman Empire lost WW I and control of the Holy Land. How much weight should this carry? The Jews have been on their land for 4000 years. How much weight should this carry? The Holy Land was attacked and conquered by Muslims in the 7th century and in the 16th century. How much weight should this carry? Arabs are not indigenous to the Holy Land.
Will something like this happen during negotiations when Jews tell Arabs Jerusalem will not be divided and there will be no right of return?: Abbas and other Arabs will say, “Yoohoo, Obama, Israel is not playing fair,” then they get up and leave the table.
Muslim commentators say Israel will be isolated from its neighbors? Give us a break! If neighbors don’t act decently, who wants them? The U.S. and the West will still be partners with Israel and help protect them against any uprisings. I mean, the Jews have already battled some of the greatest civilizations that ever existed. The Jews are still here, but the Babylonians and Assyrians are gone.