Obama Envoy in Israel for Security Talks
Senior White House adviser Dennis Ross and another top U.S. official arrived in Israel on Thursday for talks about Israel's "security needs," an official statement said.
Ross and David Hale, adviser to U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell, would "hold talks about questions regarding Israel's security needs as well as other issues related to regional security," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said.
"The aim is to protect the qualitative military edge of the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) within the framework of negotiations with the Palestinians, so that Israel's relative advantage will be preserved in any future agreement," it said without giving further details.
The two men were to hold talks with Netanyahu as well as with Defense Minister Ehud Barak, according to reports on Israeli public radio.
Ross made a similar visit last month for what the media said were talks about Israel's security needs in any final-status negotiations with the Palestinians.
Israel and the Palestinians are no longer holding any form of peace negotiations after direct talks broke down late last year in a dispute over Jewish settlement-building on Palestinian land.
Source: Agence France Presse
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