Lieberman: No Chance of Peace if U.N. Recognizes Palestinian State
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Friday bluntly told the European Union's top diplomat that U.N. recognition of a Palestinian state in September would render the Oslo Accords null and void.
At a breakfast meeting with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, Lieberman said the 1993 Oslo Accords that created the Palestinian Authority, and all the agreements reached since then, would be cancelled if they secured recognition of their independent state when the United Nations meets this autumn.
"The unilateral declaration at the United Nations would mean the end of the Oslo Agreement and a violation of all the agreements that were signed up to today," Lieberman was widely quoted as saying by all the mainstream Israel news websites and radio stations.
"Israel would no longer be bound to the agreements that were signed with the Palestinians over the last 18 years," he said in talks with Ashton who arrived on Thursday evening and is due to meet the Palestinian leadership later on Friday.
Ashton is on a four-day tour of the region for talks with officials in Israel, the Palestinian territories, Jordan and Egypt, during which she is aiming to find a way to resume peace talks which collapsed late last year.
But Lieberman told her there was "zero chance of restarting peace talks," and launched an attack on Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, claiming he "does not want an agreement, he wants conflict" with Israel.
"By looking to secure a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state, Mahmoud Abbas is acting out of his own personal interests, without taking into account Palestinian interests nor the advice of many officials in the Palestinian Authority who are opposed to his initiative," public radio quoted him as saying.
Lieberman was referring to a growing number of media reports suggesting there is division within the Palestinian Authority over the diplomatic strategy of approaching the U.N.
Later on Friday Ashton will meet Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad then have dinner with Abbas in a bid to explore options of bringing the parties back to the negotiating table after all direct contact was cut off last September.
Before arriving, Ashton said she was pushing for an urgent meeting of the Middle East Quartet of peacemaking diplomats to help re-launch negotiations, with diplomatic sources in Brussels telling Agence France Presse she was hoping for a swift meeting, by early July at the latest, in Washington.
On June 10, she wrote to her fellow Quartet principals – U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon -- calling for the Quartet to adopt a statement consolidating elements of U.S. President Barack Obama's call for talks to resume on the basis of 1967 borders.
"It is critical that we make a gesture before the summer, because we need to contribute to a calming of a volatile situation," she wrote in her letter, a copy of which was seen by AFP.
"This is no time for unilateral moves on either side, since this could lead to escalation," she wrote.
Ashton is just one of a number of world leaders working to find a way to head off potentially volatile developments in September when the Palestinians approach the United Nations to request membership and recognition by the 192-member body in a move fiercely opposed by Israel.
She will travel to Cairo on Saturday to discuss events in Libya, before returning to Israel on Sunday for a joint meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Quartet envoy Tony Blair, an EU spokesman said.
She will then fly to Luxembourg to brief the EU's 27 foreign ministers on Monday.
17 June 2011, 13:43
04
There is NO future for the state of israel, as home for the jews, unless
Israel itself recognizes Palestine and the borders of 1967. Most Israelis know that, it is a matter of time, they will have to recognize Palestine.
17 June 2011, 14:04
03
There is no chance for peace with the Israelis regardless. After 60+ years, the only hope they have to live in peace is for them to return to their mother countries of Germany, Hungary, Belarus, Romania... It's safer, quicker and logical, too.
17 June 2011, 18:43
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To: Joaquim, well you want us to return to Germany , Hungary Poland Etc.
Where exactly to the gas chambers?
We were in Europe and did not like the hospitality, matter of fact it cost us 6 million peoples' lives.
And what about Jews about 1.2 million who left Arabian countries only with their cloth on ?
We can live in peace but our neighbors don't accept that. same as the local Arabs refused to 1947 UN resolution.
Can only imagine what would have happen to us if we lost.
Anyway continue dreaming its nice to dream.
Also you can continue killing each other , you do it with greater success than Israel ever did. Mabruk,
17 June 2011, 19:08
02
Danny,
Nothing most got against jews or judaism, it is the greater israel that your right wing keeps seeking that is getting everything messed up. You are the only apartheid state on earth now. Look how they continue to build settlements in west bank and Jerusalem. What happened to you in Europe was not the palestinains fault nor do they have any cause in it.
What do you recommend that the palestians who lost all do? Do you even compensate them as Germany and Europe did to you? Do you find it manly that you have modernized weapons versus their AK 47s and RPGs and that you beat them at every war?
You are right though, arabs keep killing each other and you gain. But someday will come when that strategy will not work for you anymore. So you better have the will to live and make peace with your neighbors instead of having the will to dominate at any cost.
17 June 2011, 20:24
02
This is just another in the plethora of excuses that the Israelis are using so as to avoid negotiations. There is absolutely no desire on the part of the current Israeli government to negotiate. It will stall and avoid this process as long as none of the world powers speak up.
17 June 2011, 21:01
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urotherside, Red your comment and would have sent you to take some history lessons, as you know history can't be twisted.
You said Arabs have nothing against Jews, so who run to assist the Germans with his troops? Yes , the Mufti HaJ Amin El Husseini who got his salary from the Germans and his troops used to wear SS uniform, same time he declared Jihad against them. There was no Israel then.
You said Israel has a modern army while Arabs has only AK 47, what did we have in 1947-1948? nothing we were attacked from inside and from Outside by 7 modern armies and you lost.
You say who will compensate the Palestinian while German compensated Jews, Did ever Palestinian were mass killed or starved to death ? Did the Israeli prepare gas chambers for Palestinian or was it the Palestinian who wished to help the German.
And who compensated the 1.2 million Jews expelled from Arabian countries and all their property was taken by the Arabian governments.
Imagine if we were loosing in 1948.
17 June 2011, 21:18
01
Fine. Then the international community should not recognize Israel if Israel refuses to recognize Palestine. If the israelis refuse to fully recognize the rights of palestinians then they have no future here in the middle east. The jewish population in Germany now number over 200,000 and it is the country where the jewish population is growing the largest. So if you do not want to be in this region, then leave. By the way, the Jewish arabs always had a right of return to their countries. but, they received tons of money to go to Israel and they no longer call themselves Arabs and they do not want to go back. Fine, they should not be forced to go back. But the Palestinians do want to go back and it is an inanlianeble right. If jews can go back to "their homeland" after 2000 years (I do not know anyone that could trace their family tree to 2000 years back) then palestinians have the RIGHT.
17 June 2011, 21:28
01
Nabil, The UN should not recognize a "Palestinian state". The two-state solution, separate and totally unequal, which is Apartheid, is dead. There will be one state, one man one vote majority rule. In four years the Christian and Muslim Arabs will become a majority in Israel/Palestine. Israel cannot do what it did in nineteen forty eight because ethnic cleansing is no longer tolerated by the west and the world. Also, Apartheid is no longer tolerated (at least not for long). Even in "Israel proper”, the Arabs will be a majority in forty years even without the right of return of refugees. Remember, it took two hundred years for white minority rule to end in Southern Africa. Israel will be renamed Palestine the same way Rhodesia was renamed Zimbabwe. Does anyone remember a country called Rhodesia? And this is how “Israel” will be remembered in the future.
17 June 2011, 22:18
01
To the cry-baby rapist, thief and jailer, gas chambers happened over over 55 years ago and not by the Palestinians. Since then the implanted Israelis have turned the lives of the Palestinians into a suffocating life. Go back to where you came from, and stop wining about the gas chambers. Behave yourselves, be modest, and you will not be bothered by your old countrymen. Your relatives who still live there live more peacefully than you in Israel. In any case, you still have Canada, Australia and the US, to count a few. Just go back. It's really a quicker, safer and the only logical solution. Or, continue to suffer and cause suffering until one day you will realize the only truth. Don't say you were not warned. It's just a friendly advice from someone who cares.
18 June 2011, 03:55
01
Danny said << "You said Arabs have nothing against Jews, so who run to assist the Germans with his troops? Yes , the Mufti HaJ Amin El Husseini who got his salary from the Germans and his troops used to wear SS uniform, same time he declared Jihad against them. There was no Israel then. ";
___ So you are saying because of 1 man's actions of what's his face Mufti did with the Germans, then the European jews now had the right to ravage Palestine, take their land, commit terrorism (admitted by old Israeli war mongers), and send them packing into refugee camps for the past 63 years. Nice logic you got going there. Maybe you need to take some logic classes.
On second thought you do sound twisted like Lieberman, so maybe you and him are 1.
18 June 2011, 03:57
00
Danny said << " You said Israel has a modern army while Arabs has only AK 47, what did we have in 1947-1948? nothing we were attacked from inside and from Outside by 7 modern armies and you lost. ";
__ I am betting back then you had machine guns and they had knives. The europeans feeling guilt for what they did to you gave you superioir arms to whatever the Palestinians had. That's how you were able to terrorize them out of their villages and towns.
18 June 2011, 04:01
01
Danny said << "You say who will compensate the Palestinian while German compensated Jews, Did ever Palestinian were mass killed or starved to death ? Did the Israeli prepare gas chambers for Palestinian or was it the Palestinian who wished to help the German. ";
__No you did not place them in gas chambers yet (although I would like to bet that you would love to) .. but you bombed and terrorized their butts for th epast 63 years. Your country is the modern day Nazi Germany. Do upon others what Hitler did upon you.
18 June 2011, 08:01
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asaf, Nice try. You're pushing your guilt to Lebanon and Syria now.
18 June 2011, 08:56
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Urotheside. As said, can argue about future, can argue about opinions,. politics, policy , One thing you can't change: Historical facts, no matter what your opinion is. You said that the young state was supported by Europe due to their guilt, wrong, no weapons then, the British leaving Palestine left their weapons and their weapons to the Arabs due to their interests in the Middle East , oil fields etc. From a population of 600,000 Jews in Palestine during 1948 about 1 pct lost their lives-more than 6000. Part of them are holocaust survivors , last remains from families murdered in the gas chambers. You say that Israel would have adopted the Nazi method of Killing , well I'm trying to imagine what would have left of us if we lost in 1948. And if we are a Nazi state why the majority of Arabian population in Israel will prefer Israeli governments and not the Palestinian.
Including Arabs of East Jerusalem. Do they know something we don't ?
Comparing the rights they received in Lebanon.
18 June 2011, 09:11
00
Urotherside , you saying because of 1 man's actions of what's his face Mufti did with the Germans, then the European jews now had the right to ravage Palestine, take their land, commit terrorism (admitted by old Israeli war mongers), and send them packing into refugee camps for the past 63 years..
We'll it wasn't 1 man's actions, it was supported by many others like pro Nazi government in Iraq, I know, my wife's parents are from Iraq. they were killed by thousands.
About the fact the Palestinians left in camps for 63 years, why don't you blame your country for that or Syria? where are the Palestinian human rights in Lebanon? are they allowed to live where they want? do they get any social benefit ? can they elect ? King Hussein during black September killed more Palestinian in one month more than Israel did during 70 years.
Same in Lebanon during the 70th .
Remind you also the Khartum convention with the famous 4 "NO" ?
in 1968, this before the Jewish settlements in West bank,
19 June 2011, 05:52
00
Danny,
You are twisting many facts big time. In any case you had no right (devine or otherwise) to come back from Europe (1878 years after the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and took who was left alive there as slaves), and forcefully take Palestine from some defenseless peasants that lived there.
Hitler sure passed you that evil chain. Want to impress me. Remove your settlers from west bank and East Jerusalem and give the palestinians their own state and leave them alone. also give them back their dignity and applogize for the evil you did upn them.
Ecclesiastes 7:7 states: "Oppression makes a wise man crazy"
By the way: It has been 63 years and you still got no temple amigo. just a mount. So keep dreaming on too.
