Livni spoke with Egyptian officials as well as Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas during a series of meetings she held while attending the World Economic Forum on the Middle East. The conference was held at the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit presented a proposal to move the plan up to final status talks, skipping the interim steps which include the PA fighting terrorism and dismantling terrorist organizations. Under the plan, the IDF is expected to pull back to the positions held prior to the escalation of terrorist activity that began in September 2000.
Livni stressed that it was important for both sides to meet the requirements set forth in each step of the plan before proceeding to the next. Negotiations on a final status agreement should have begun in 2005, according to the plan – if the prior requirements had been met.
In her meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarek, Livni promised that Israel would do what it could to help the PA population – without helping terrorists in the process. She also assured Abbas that Israel would try to prevent a humanitarian crisis in PA-controlled territories.
Abbas said, in his speech to the Forum, that the responsibility for dealing with Israel and negotiating peace agreements rested with his own organization, the Palestine Liberation Organization, previously led by arch-terrorist Yasser Arafat.
“The political negotiations with the Israeli government are the historical choice of the Palestinian people and are the responsibility and the jurisdiction of the Palestine Liberation Organization, whose executive committee I head,” he said.
Abbas claimed that the Hamas-led PA government would not stand in the way of peace talks, and that the issue of a peace agreement would ultimately be decided by a referendum of the general population.
“It is time to end occupation and conflict in the holy land,” he said. “We have no choice but to resume a meaningful peace process that leads to the implementation of the Road Map.”
Abbas’ meeting with Livni and Vice Premier Shimon Peres was the first high-level contact between Israel and the PA since terror organization Hamas was elected as the new PA government majority party.
Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif urged the Israeli team to continue talks with Abbas. National Infrastructure Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer, Tourism Minister Yitzhak Herzog, Finance Minister Avraham Hirchson, MK Avishai Braverman and Likud MK Silvan Shalom also attended the meeting.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit presented a proposal to move the plan up to final status talks, skipping the interim steps which include the PA fighting terrorism and dismantling terrorist organizations. Under the plan, the IDF is expected to pull back to the positions held prior to the escalation of terrorist activity that began in September 2000.
Livni stressed that it was important for both sides to meet the requirements set forth in each step of the plan before proceeding to the next. Negotiations on a final status agreement should have begun in 2005, according to the plan – if the prior requirements had been met.
In her meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarek, Livni promised that Israel would do what it could to help the PA population – without helping terrorists in the process. She also assured Abbas that Israel would try to prevent a humanitarian crisis in PA-controlled territories.
Abbas said, in his speech to the Forum, that the responsibility for dealing with Israel and negotiating peace agreements rested with his own organization, the Palestine Liberation Organization, previously led by arch-terrorist Yasser Arafat.
“The political negotiations with the Israeli government are the historical choice of the Palestinian people and are the responsibility and the jurisdiction of the Palestine Liberation Organization, whose executive committee I head,” he said.
Abbas claimed that the Hamas-led PA government would not stand in the way of peace talks, and that the issue of a peace agreement would ultimately be decided by a referendum of the general population.
“It is time to end occupation and conflict in the holy land,” he said. “We have no choice but to resume a meaningful peace process that leads to the implementation of the Road Map.”
Abbas’ meeting with Livni and Vice Premier Shimon Peres was the first high-level contact between Israel and the PA since terror organization Hamas was elected as the new PA government majority party.
Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif urged the Israeli team to continue talks with Abbas. National Infrastructure Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer, Tourism Minister Yitzhak Herzog, Finance Minister Avraham Hirchson, MK Avishai Braverman and Likud MK Silvan Shalom also attended the meeting.