Minister Shalom: Palestinians looking for excuses to evade talks
Vice Premier Silvan Shalom said that Israel is interested in returning to the negotiating table, but that the Palestinians "are finding excuses" to evade doing so.
"It started with the demand that a two-state solution be recognized, continued with a demand to freeze settlement building, and now they are conditioning returning to talks on recognizing the '67 borders. The time has come for the Palestinians to stop putting up preconditions and to return to the negotiating table out of a real desire for peace," said Minister Shalom during a meeting with the Lithuanian foreign minister, who is slated to meet later with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. (Roni Sofer)
