Lieberman: Territorial compromise is an illusion
Speaking at Knesset Foreign Affairs, Defense Committee, foreign minister says has no faith in talks with Palestinians, accuses PA of trying to delegitimize Israel by filing lawsuits against its officials abroad
Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said he has no faith in the Palestinians, because of the lawsuits they have filed against Israeli officials around the world.
In a Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee session on Monday, Lieberman said, "Today, when the entire Middle East is ablaze, in Yemen, the World Jihad, Iraq, Hezbollah, etc, anyone who plants the illusion that we can reach an agreement at a moment's notice through a territorial compromise is delusional."
The foreign minister accused the Palestinian Authority of heading a delegitimizing campaign against Israel, "part of which is funded by money that we transfer to the Palestinians."
He said: "Most of the suits filed against officers and officials around the world are funded by the Palestinian Authority and initiated by it. This leads to the question of who the Palestinian Authority represents. Abu Mazen (Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas) does not represent Gaza, Hamas rules there, and since elections in the PA have been postponed three times already, the question must be asked: 'Who does Abu Mazen represent?' and it is uncertain whether he is capable of bringing the goods in negotiations.
"We cannot have a situation in which we cooperate with the Palestinians in matters of security and economy, and they continue to file lawsuits against us and incite against us. I will not have them working to delegitimize Israel."
When asked by opposition leader Tzipi Livni of the significance of his statements on negotiations, the foreign minister said, "I have no faith in anyone who files claims of war crimes against Tzipi Livni or other Israeli officials. The Palestinians start every conversation with international elements by saying they do not believe our intentions are sincere.
"I do not believe in their intentions in light of their initiative to boycott Israeli products, their lawsuits etc. We should examine, as a society, if we are willing to accept such playing conditions – to have them conducting peace talks with us on the one hand, while allotting a significant part of their resources against us on the other hand."
'Yisrael Beiteinu prepared for land exchange'
Lieberman reiterated his position that a peace treaty based on a territorial agreement cannot be reached. "It is no coincidence that an agreement has not been reached in 16 years, even when there were Left and Center government. There are no offers that exceed what (former Prime Minister Ehud Barak) offered at Camp David. Anyone who thinks they can reach peace by territorial compromise is fooling themselves and others.
"The conflict in recent years, from the 1980s and mainly from the start of the 2000s, has turned into a religious dispute, and as such there is no chance of reaching an agreement through a territorial compromise. Therefore, Livni and Olmert's offers in Annapolis cannot bring peace, since the dispute has become a religious dispute. We, in Yisrael Beiteinu are prepared for a land and population exchange as is written in our platform. Conflicts of this nature cannot be solved in one stroke."
He was asked if this is also the government's position and said, "This is my position as I view the situation. We are operating along the government's guidelines, which no party has 100% part in, but this is the situation as I see it."
When asked by a right-wing member of Knesset if Israel is forming an anti-Arab anti-Muslim bloc to tackle Muslim activity around the world, Lieberman said: "We are forming a pro-Israeli front that continues to expand. In the past year we obtained decisive votes in the international area and reached a situation in which there is a 'moral majority' of 18 countries that vote with Israel, and in the coming year we will expand this bloc."
