Olmert with Rice (archives)
צילום: עמוס בן גרשום, לע"מ
Olmert, Rice speak for first time since UN incident
Prime Minister's Office states leaders plan to resolve issue of Olmert's slip of the tongue 'over a glass of wine'
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert spoke to US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Thursday, for the first time since an embarrassing incident between them.
The Prime Minister's Office stated that the two agreed to converse on the subject "over a glass of wine", after Rice initiated the telephone call.
Olmert claimed last week that Rice had been forced by President George W. Bush to abstain from voting on a UN Security Council measure, after a late night phone call he had made to the US president. Sources from Washington later refuted Olmert's claims.
The statement from Olmert's office said he and Rice had agreed to leave the incident and subsequent misunderstandings behind them, and to return to the positive relationship they had enjoyed throughout the years.
The two leaders also discussed developments in the military operation in Gaza, and Olmert said Israel was interested in pursuing the Egyptian ceasefire plan in order to bring the operation to an end.
Rice said the US would be willing to assist Israel in preventing the smuggling of arms into Gaza.
