It will take three years to reach a peace deal in the region, and another five years to make it happen, according to Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who offered the assessment Saturday during an interview on Channel 2 TV.
"A regional peace accord with our neighbors can be reached within three years," he said, adding that once attained, the agreement "may take another five years to implement." Barak made the statement in context of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's upcoming meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama, slated for Monday, May 18, in Washington D.C.