 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Jerusalem (AFP) March 3, 2011 Norway may unilaterally recognise a Palestinian state if there is no progress in efforts to end the conflict with Israel, Oslo's top diplomat said in an interview published Thursday. "I would like to be the first to recognise the state of Palestine when negotiations have been completed," Jonas Gahr Stoere told the left-leaning Haaretz newspaper. "I say so as long as there is a prospect for those negotiations. If it is clear to people that there is no such prospect we will have to reevaluate," he said after meeting with top Israeli and Palestinian leaders in an attempt to resurrect some form of peace dialogue between them. Europe was "watching for results and initiatives" which would lead to a peace agreement, but many were running out of patience, he told the paper. "I think that in key European capitals the hope to see that change is thinner than it used to be." As long as there was "credible progress toward a two-state solution," the international community would back such efforts, Stoere said. In a separate interview with the English-language Jerusalem Post, Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, who is also in the region, suggested that Stockholm would hold off recognising a Palestinian state until the two sides reach a deal. "I will look forward to recognising a Palestinian state as soon as possible, but there (first) has to be a Palestinian state" he said when asked if Sweden was considering such a step. "A state has to be founded on an end of occupation, and an end of occupation is based upon an agreement with Israel." Direct peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians ran into difficulties in September last year, just weeks after they were launched by US President Barack Obama with the aim of reaching a comprehensive deal within a year. Since then, the talks, which foundered over a dispute about Israeli settlement building, have been completely frozen, and the Palestinians have instead begun pursuing diplomatic alternatives for achieving their long-promised state. The Jerusalem Post said Stoere, who met Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, had not been briefed about the Israeli prime minister's intention, widely reported the same day, to push for a long-term interim agreement. Bildt was to meet Netanyahu on Thursday.
Share This Article With Planet Earth
Related Links
NATO: no intent to intervene in Libya but making plansBrussels (AFP) March 3, 2011 NATO has no intention of intervening in Libya but is planning for "all eventualities", alliance chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Thursday. Rasmussen said at a press conference that NATO officials "take note" of a request from the Libyan opposition for foreign nations to launch airstrikes against mercenaries hired by Moamer Kadhafi. "We follow and monitor the situation closely, take note ... read more |
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2010 - SpaceDaily. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |
del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
YahooMyWeb
Google
Facebook
