Olmert speaks to Chirac, Annan

Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Saturday that Israel will hold talks with Hamas only if the Islamic group disarms, abandons pledges to destroy Israel and endorses agreements signed between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

In phone talks with Olmert, United Nations Secretary-General and French President Jacques Chirac assured the acting prime minister that the Quartet peace body --- the U.N., the United States, Russia, and the European Union --- will back Israel’s demand that Hamas disarms after its landslide victory in Wednesday’s Palestinian parliamentary election.

Olmert told the French president that Israel is concerned over Hamas’s election victory, saying the development will likely burry hopes of future peace talks with Israel.

“Israel can not come to terms with a Palestinian Authority that includes an armed party vowed to its destruction,” Olmert told Chirac.

Chirac said that France backs Israel’s position and Paris has long said that the peace process can not be revived as long as Hamas is armed.

Olmert told Chirac that Israel will push for a united international position demanding Hamas disarm and recognize Israel’s right to exist.

Earlier in the weekend Olmert called British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, and Jordanian King Abudullah.

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni spoke with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, EU's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel will arrive in Jerusalem Sunday for talks with Olmert. Merkel will also meet Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas in Ramalah.