[Al Arabiya Latest] Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday ruled out holding any peace talks with Israel until a full and lasting freeze in Jewish settlements, which EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said Tel Aviv may agree to by mid-September.
| What small fraction of the first percent above zero as odds that Mr. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana consulted any Israeli government official before saying that? |
| Javier is an agnostic diplomat: he'll say anything to anyone ... |
Abbas and one of his senior allies in his Fatah party both reiterated the Palestinian stance on the settlement issue as a U.S. official acknowledged the problems in persuading Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-leaning Israeli coalition to stop settlement completely.
Nabil Shaath The official, who spoke last week, said Washington would not insist on a total freeze if the Palestinians would accept something less.
But Palestinian official Nabil Shaath Shaath told foreign media in Ramallah that if President Barack Obama should ask Fatah to start negotiations after only a partial, temporary settlement freeze: "I would say, Mr. Obama, we love you...but I am sorry this is not enough to bring us to the peace process."
| Thank you, President Obama. |
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