 |
 |
 |
|
|
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (US State Department photo)
|
|
|
|
|
|
| By Israel Insider staff and partners February 14, 2007 |
|
| |
 Bookmark to del.icio.us |
| |
Israelis and Americans alike are calling for a tough approach to the Palestinian Authority at Monday's trilateral summit between Prime Minister Olmert, PA President Mahmoud Abbas, and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, diplomatic sources said, according to the Jerusalem Post.
Abbas signed an agreement that does not fulfill any of the three conditions Israel and the international community expect from any Palestinian government: recognition of Israel, an end to all terror, and realization of all prior agreements. Furthermore, Abbas' agreement to the Mecca deal is perceived as a slap in the face to Olmert, who laid out his conditions in a speech at Sde Boker, and to the US who has been helping strengthen Abbas over Hamas.
Rather than cancel the summit meeting, which one official said was impossible due to the criticism Israel would suffer from the international community as a result, some Israeli officials suggest making the meetings uncomfortable for Abbas, the Post reported. Officials in Washington have suggested making it clear to the Palestinian President that, depending on the final agreements of the Palestinian unity government, this could be his last chance for such a meeting.
The Israeli government has been sending the world mixed signals since the Palestinian unity talks in Mecca were finalized last weekend.
As early as last Friday, Ynet was reporting that Israeli officials had "snubbed" the unity deal, since it fails to meet Quartet conditions. The report also emphasized that the officials did not reject the Mecca deal outright. "This isn't what we expected," Jerusalem officials commented, adding that the agreement did not adopt the Quartet conditions.
"Even though the future Palestinian government has not yet established its basic guidelines, the appointment letter issued by (Palestinian President) Mahmoud Abbas makes it clear that the conditions were not upheld," officials said.
"Israel stresses that terror activity against it is continuing, and Gilad Shalit has not yet been released. We will continue to examine developments in light of the Quartet's clear conditions. Israel expects the international community to continue to show determination and stand behind its principles to bring about their full implementation," they declared.
Foreign Minister Livni attended the Munich Conference on Security Policy over the weekend and tried to convince European diplomats to be cautious in their responses to the Mecca agreement and to firmly demand that the Quartet conditions are met.
By Saturday evening, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office gave a statement that contradicted Friday's reports.
According to the statement, Israel made it very clear to Western Europe, over the weekend, that it does not accept the unity agreement reached in Mecca and that it hopes the Quartet will also reject the agreement until the Palestinians agree to the terms set by the international community.
Then at Sunday's cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Olmert said that Israel was not accepting or rejecting the agreement signed in Mecca between Fatah and Hamas.
"Israel is studying the details of the agreements and will then make its stance known," the Prime Minister said.
Throughout the week, Israeli officials have said that there were no plans to cancel the upcoming summit.
Ynetnews contributed to this article. |
|
 
|
|
|
|
Click on the blue headline to read a Talkback comment and respond to it. Click on the  icon to send a private email to the talkback writer. The icon appears only if the writer has decided to be contacted. If no popup window appears, please make sure your popup blocker allows israelinsider.com.
|
|
| |
|
|
