PA chief negotiator to US: Israel made peace talks fail; now is not time for peace process
“Head of the PLO negotiations department, Saeb Erekat… in an exclusive statement to WAFA, while he accompanied President Mahmoud Abbas to Egypt, said: ‘We informed the American administration that it would not obtain a cessation of settlement from Netanyahu, and therefore the Israeli government caused the failure of the American efforts [in the peace talks]. We had hoped that Washington would hold Israel responsible for what is happening…
We hope that the American administration will recognize the Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, as a response to the Israeli dictates in everything concerning the settlements and the other unilateral steps…
Right now is not the time for [a peace] process or for talk about proximity talks. What is required right now is decisions, and if the US wishes to maintain the two-state option, it must recognize the Palestinian state on the 1967 borders…
He stated that President Mahmoud Abbas, during his visit to Athens, had asked the Prime Minister of Greece to recognize the Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, and that this country [Greece] would act together with the other friends in Europe to do so. He emphasized, ‘The President’s tour of Latin America a few months ago led to the great and mighty recognition of the Palestinian state by Brazil and Argentina, and we hope that it will be followed by recognition by additional friendly countries such as Uruguay, Paraguay, Peru and others, during the coming days and weeks.’
In response to a question concerning the importance of raising the [rank of] Palestinian representation in European countries, Erekat said: ‘These are positive steps, and it is a good thing that our ambassadors will be presenting their letters of credence to the King of Spain, the President of Greece, or the President of France. It is a great symbolic step, but this does not take the place of their recognition of the State of Palestine on the 1967 borders, since states are [defined by] borders.”
We hope that the American administration will recognize the Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, as a response to the Israeli dictates in everything concerning the settlements and the other unilateral steps…
Right now is not the time for [a peace] process or for talk about proximity talks. What is required right now is decisions, and if the US wishes to maintain the two-state option, it must recognize the Palestinian state on the 1967 borders…
He stated that President Mahmoud Abbas, during his visit to Athens, had asked the Prime Minister of Greece to recognize the Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, and that this country [Greece] would act together with the other friends in Europe to do so. He emphasized, ‘The President’s tour of Latin America a few months ago led to the great and mighty recognition of the Palestinian state by Brazil and Argentina, and we hope that it will be followed by recognition by additional friendly countries such as Uruguay, Paraguay, Peru and others, during the coming days and weeks.’
In response to a question concerning the importance of raising the [rank of] Palestinian representation in European countries, Erekat said: ‘These are positive steps, and it is a good thing that our ambassadors will be presenting their letters of credence to the King of Spain, the President of Greece, or the President of France. It is a great symbolic step, but this does not take the place of their recognition of the State of Palestine on the 1967 borders, since states are [defined by] borders.”