Olmert. Not headed to war
Photo: Flash 90
Bar-On. Ridiculing Bibi
Photo: Erez Kolomoiski
Olmert says believes in diplomatic initiatives
Prime minister takes advantage of meeting with Kadima members to send another calming message to Damascus, saying 'we are not interested in war.' However, he adds, 'We are also not interested in making absurd guarantees in advance.' Is there a chance for an agreement with Syrians? 'If I see a chink of an opportunity, I will not miss it,' Olmert clarifies
"It is important that we create a momentum which will lead to a change in the diplomatic situation. I believe in diplomatic initiatives. In a place where there is a chink of an opportunity, I will not be able to forgive myself if I don’t take it," Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
said Wednesday night in a meeting with Kadima council members at this Jerusalem residence.
"We have no interest in war with the Syrians, but we are also not interested in making absurd guarantees in advance. I believe that a dynamics will be created that will change the situation in the north. Both the Syrians and us are not interested in war."
"If I see a chink of an opportunity with the Syrians, I will not miss it," Olmert said, addressing the tensions and the mutual exchange of calming messages in the past few days.
Sound Familiar?
Hanan Greenberg
During military drill in Golan Heights defense minister states Israel not interested in war with Syria and vice versa. Barak's statement joins calming messages by Olmert, Assad's deputy on issue in recent days
Israeli and Syrian officials have been holding a dialogue in the media in recent days, conveying calming messages regarding the possibility of an escalation on the northern border.
On Tuesday morning Olmert visited the north and made it clear that Israel has no plans of launching a war against Syria.
Later Tuesday, Syrian Vice President Farouq al-Shara sent a similar message, saying that his country had no intention of waging war against Israel to regain the Golan Heights from the Jewish state.
"Israel knows we don’t want war. We should always be ready to respond to Israeli aggression, but Syria will not start a war,” Shara said at a lecture in the Syrian capital.
In his meeting with the Kadima activists, Olmert also addressed the Palestinian issue, saying that he believed "there is some kind of chance with the Palestinians, but I do not believe in rushing into things and in carelessness which could create a risk."
Finance Minister Ronnie Bar-On, who also took part in the meeting, referred to the 2008 state budget and took advantage of the opportunity to ridicule Likud Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu, who beat Moshe Feiglin in the party's primary elections on Tuesday.
"The fact that the budget was approved by a large majority of ministers conveys stability. So I would like to tell Feiglin and the guy who got a bit more votes than he did – you will have to wait a bit longer for something to happen. You may need another round of primaries. We, in the meantime, plan to continue winning," Bar-On said.
