Peres speaks to foreign reporters
Photo: Yisrael Noi
Peres says recent tensions with Syria 'over'
President tells foreign correspondents Israel 'clearly ready to negotiate directly with Syria for peace', expresses optimism about upcoming Mideast peace conference in Washington
Israel's Nobel Prize-winning president, Shimon Peres, on Tuesday said recent tensions between his country and Syria were now "over" and expressed optimism about an upcoming Mideast peace conference in Washington.
Negotiations
Prime minister says Monday Israel is interested in holding peace negotiations with Syria without pre-conditions or demands, states he respects Bashar Assad, Syria's policy
In his first appearance as president before foreign reporters, the 84-year-old elder statesman blamed Islamic militants for harsh Israeli restrictions that have severely disrupted life in the West Bank and Gaza.
"It's not thatIsrael has introduced this situation," he said, pointing to Gaza militants who keep firing rockets into Israel in the two years since Israel withdrew from the coastal territory. "We hate this situation."
Peres' comments came just hours after the World Bank issued a 35-page report detailing an alarming deterioration in the Palestinian economy. The report said most private businesses in Gaza are endangered because of Israel's decision to shut down the border crossings - halting most imports and exports - in the wake of Hamas' militants violent takeover of the coastal territory.
As for Syria, the president sought to calm tensions following a widely reported Israeli air attack there on Sept. 6. Israel has clamped a news blackout on the raid, which Syria announced and US officials have confirmed.
Foreign media reports have suggested Israel struck a nuclear facility in Syria built with North Korean technology, or Iranian arms destined for Lebanese Hizbullah guerrillas.
"The nervousness in relations between Syria and ourselves is over," Peres said. "We are clearly ready to negotiate directly with Syria for peace."
Peres' statement followed similarly conciliatory remarks on Monday by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who said has "a lot of respect for the Syrian leader and for Syrian behavior".
'Window of opportunity made of glass'
A new poll Tuesday showed the unacknowledged airstrike has helped Olmert boost his popularity, which plummeted after last year's inconclusive war against Hizbullah guerrillas in Lebanon.
The Dahaf Research Institute said 35 percent of people questioned were pleased with Olmert's performance, up from 25 percent on Sept. 7 - just after reports of the airstrike emerged.
Peres said he feels "hopeful" about an upcoming Mideast peace conference, expected to take place in Washington in November. Hamas' takeover of Gaza has helped jump-start peace talks between Israel and the moderate, Fatah-led government in the West Bank.
Asked about Palestinian concerns that Israel is avoiding specifics in the run-up to the conference, Peres said "When you negotiate you cannot start with your fallback positions but with opening positions."
He spoke positively about recent meetings between Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, saying the chemistry between the two men is in "very good shape".
"I think they have made progress," he said.
Peres took office as Israel's ninth president in July, pledging to devote his seven-year term in the ceremonial post to his lifelong dream of Middle East peace. He has served as Israel's prime minister three times and in 1994 shared the Nobel Peace Prize with Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
His appearance on Tuesday was part of a series of events marking the 50th anniversary of Israel's Foreign Press Association. Fifty years ago, in June 1957, Peres, then director general of the defense ministry, became the first Israeli official to address the association.
His comments on Tuesday were filled with his trademark one-liners that have made him one of Israel's most colorful orators. Describing Israel's drive for solar energy, he said, "We feel the sun is more reliable than the Saudis." Asked why Israel's leaders are so unpopular, he blamed television, saying it "makes dictatorships impossible and democracies intolerable."
He called today's fledgling talks with Palestinians a window of opportunity that "like any window is made of glass."
"We have to be careful not to break it," Peres said.
