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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Israel rejects Golan pullout before talks |
| 2009-04-27 |
| [Beirut Daily Star: Region] Israel's foreign minister said Sunday that he was willing to sit down immediately with Syria to talk peace if there would be no preconditions, just days after saying that Damascus was not a partner for peace. Syria recently said it would be willing to resume indirect peace talks with the new Israeli government as long as they focused on a complete withdrawal from the Golan Heights. "I'd be glad to negotiate with Syria this evening, but without preconditions," Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman told Israel Radio. "They say, first go back to '67 lines and give up the Golan. If we agree to that, what is there to negotiate?" he said. In an interview with the Austrian newspaper Kleine Zeitung published this weekend, Lieberman said he "cannot see Syria as a genuine partner to any sort of agreement" because of its links with Iran and support for anti-Israel groups such as Hizbullah and Hamas. Israel's new prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is still formulating his government's foreign policy. But he and Lieberman both have said they would not be willing to cede the territory Syria wants. Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem refused to comment on Lieberman's remarks. "I do not comment on the remarks of one person in Israel, I comment on a stance the Israeli government has pledged to make toward the peace process," Moallem said. "They [the Israelis] know exactly what the requirements for peace are." Moallem spoke at a joint press conference in Damascus with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi. Yang Jiechi, who wrapped up a regional Middle East visit in Damascus on Sunday, said Israel should return the Golan Heights to Syria. "China supports Syria's efforts to recover the Golan," he said. Meanwhile, Syrian President Bashar Assad insisted on the return of the Golan Heights but said he could not foresee peace talks with Israel anytime soon. "What counts in the end is that there is occupied territory that must be returned to Syria, and then we can talk about peace," Assad told the newspaper Die Presse, ahead of a visit to Austria Sunday. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 "Sorry, not taking any sucker bets today..." |
| Posted by: mojo 2009-04-27 15:54 |