WASHINGTON - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert made clear on Tuesday once again that he still has the mandate to make concessions on Israel's behalf, despite his lame duck government.
"In principle there is nothing to prevent us from reaching an agreement on the core issues in the near future," Olmert said regarding the ongoing peace negotiations with the Palestinian Authority.
"We're in a situation where it's possible to do so, and I hope we do. It would be good for the State of Israel."
Speaking to Israeli reporters following his last visit to Washington in an official capacity, Olmert also discussed his meeting with US President George W. Bush.
Last meeting? (Photo: Avi Ochion, GPO)
"The meeting was very special, very candid and serious in how we dealt with the important issues at hand. On a personal level it was uncommonly moving. I was touched by his (Bush's) show of friendship to me and my wife," said Olmert.
The prime minister moved back to the peace negotiations, which he has dedicated most of his public statements to in recent days: "I've been speaking to the Palestinians without pause since December 2006, I talk with (Palestinian President) Abbas nearly every week. Never has any Israeli prime minister held such extensive negotiations with a Palestinian leader like this. And so when you look at the big picture of the process, it's not as though we'll need to start again from square one.
"This is a time for decisions. I am ready to make that decision, and I hope the other side will make it as well. You don't need months to make a decision," said Olmert, but then seemed to distance what he had said earlier regarding the core issues. "We're not talking about an immediate implementation, because first the Road Map must be completed, and this will take time."
'Painful sacrifice of Jewish history'
Olmert reiterated his doctrine, which does not necessarily coincide with the position current Kadima Chairwoman Tzipi Livni is trying to present. "In the choice between maintaining our existence as a Jewish state and becoming a binational state, we must decide – and that decision must entail the painful sacrifice of parts of the land of Israel and the history of the Jewish people. That is the true argument."
The prime minister was asked about the future of American defense aid to Israel with the progression of the global economic crisis. "We have an agreement with the United States for ten years and no one has any doubts that it will be fulfilled," said Olmert.
"America is a great nation – despite the financial crisis it remains a wealthy and powerful nation with integrity. No one has hinted this is up for discussion."
Olmert also touched on the transition from the Bush administration to that of President-elect Barack Obama. "The issues pertaining to Israel will be handed over from this administration to the next one in a comprehensive and orderly manner. Obama's basic stance that Iran must not have nukes is no different from President Bush's. In the meantime it is Bush who is in office, and it is his administration that is making the decisions," said Olmert.