Rocky start. Lieberman
Photo: Guy Assayag
Outraged. Plesner
Photo: Alex Kolomoysky
Not surprised. Molla
Photo: Ofer Amram
'Lieberman damaged our image'
Opposition members outraged by new FM's statement saying Israel is no longer committed to Annapolis process. 'He caused our international image irrevocable damage,' MK Plesner says
Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman's statement that Israel is not obligated by the Annapolis conference, but rather, only by the Road Map initiative caused a ruckus amongst opposition ranks Wednesday.
Knesset Member Yohanan Plesner (Kadima) said that Lieberman began his tenure as head of Israel's Foreign Ministry by "causing its international image irrevocable damage."
Hawkish
Roni Sofer
New Foreign Minister Lieberman delivers aggressive speech Wednesday, hinting of policy to be adopted by ministry; Israel made more concessions than any other country, constantly uttering word 'peace' won't bring peace, he says
Plesner's fellow faction member MK Shlomo Molla reiterated the sentiment, saying that "(Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu's interrogee foreign minister has unveiled the new government's true colors," adding that he was not surprised by the statements, "Made by a member of the most racist cabinet in Israeli history."
Meanwhile, Hadash MK Afu Aghbaria went a step further: "The ugliness of the Netanyahu-Lieberman-Barak (government) has been unmasked. I urge the international community to place it under a diplomatic embargo, just like they did to Austria under Jörg Haider," he said.
Meanwhile, the Obama administration remains committed to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a senior US official said on Wednesday.
The statement followed Lieberman's speech at his induction ceremony.
Reuters contributed to this report
