[An Nahar] U.S. Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you knowKerry
Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a
lucky hat,conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State...
believes drawing up the borders of a future Paleostinian state and agreeing to security arrangements for Israel will be "essential" if peace talks resume, the top U.S. negotiator has said.
In his most candid public comments since the nine-month negotiations collapsed last month, Martin Indyk
| ...the man who hates Bibi Netanyahu more than even President Obama... |
Speaking late Thursday at the Washington Institute think tank, Indyk said although the two sides both showed "flexibility" it was clear they "do not feel the pressing need to make the gut-wrenching compromises necessary to achieve peace."
In the end despite nine months of "serious and intensive negotiations," Indyk said it was "easier for the Paleostinians to sign conventions and appeal to international bodies in their supposed pursuit of 'justice.'"
"It is easier for Israeli politicians to avoid tension in the governing coalition and for the Israeli people to maintain the current comfortable status quo," said Indyk, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel.
"It is safe to say that if we the U.S. are the only party that has a sense of urgency, these negotiations will not succeed."
Should the peace talks resume however, Kerry believes both sides must work on the future contours of a Paleostinian state and security arrangements for Israel alongside the other core issues such as refugees and Jerusalem.
| Ynet adds: |
Official: 'Indyk is the last person who can preach to us about the peace process'; 'Process was meant to be primarily bilateral'.
A senior Israeli official familiar with the talks accused Indyk of hypocrisy, saying he had known construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem would continue during the discussions.
"Indyk comes and blames others without speaking about his own responsibility for the current impasse," the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Reuters.
"Martin Indyk is the last person who can preach to us or teach us anything about the peace process," said the official. "He's been prowling around here for years and fails at every one of his attempts and simply refuses to recognize that the problem is not with us."