The prime minister told 170 reporters gathered in Sokolov House, the Tel Aviv Journalists Association offices, that Israel's current situation is better than it has been in the past. The exception to his assessment, he said, is the current threat from Iran.
"The Iranian issue is of great concern to us," Prime Minister Olmert said, "but it is not an Israeli matter alone, and the threat is not just against Israel. While that issue is a weighty one for us, and we are handling it in many different ways, it is first and foremost an issue for the international community." He went on to say that any solution found by the world community that prevents Iran from obtaining nuclear capabilities will satisfy Israel. The prime minister said that he felt less concerned regarding the Iranian threat following his meeting with US President George Bush last month.
Regarding the Palestinian Authority, Prime Minister Olmert expressed again his willingness to make "far-reaching concessions... We will do a great many things to make these negotiations possible." As an indication of his desire for opening a dialog with the PA, the prime minister said that he is prepared to meet the chairman of the PA, Mahmoud Abbas, with no preconditions. In the past, Olmert said he would not meet with Abbas unless abducted IDF Corp. Gilad Shalit was released.
Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman asked Olmert to address the concern that Israel is repeating its mistakes on the Lebanese front by allowing PA-based terrorist organizations in Gaza to massively regroup and re-arm under the cover of the recently arranged ceasefire.
In response, the prime minister declared, "We will not allow that, or anything like it, to develop in the south, and over the last few months we have carried out unprecedented operations. I am happy about the ceasefire and I think that it is a step that we had to reciprocate. Of course, we will not allow and we will not accept a situation in which a force is built up in Gaza that can threaten the peace of a part of the State of Israel."
As for the fate of Corporal Shalit, held by the PA's ruling Hamas faction, Olmert said that Israel is "prepared to do anything that is correct and responsible" to obtain his freedom. The prime minister explained a seeming contradiction between his stated willingness to negotiate Shalit's release, but not to negotiate with Hamas, which is holding the Israeli soldier captive:
"I said that we would not negotiate with Hamas and that we would not hand over prisoners to Hamas, but it was clear that we would negotiate for the release of the hostages [Shalit, as well as Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, held by Lebanon's Hizbullah - ed.], and it could not be any other way. But we did not negotiate with Hamas and the reason the president of Egypt got involved was because we do not want to conduct direct negotiations with the Hamas."
Prime Minister Olmert said that neither does he currently see a chance for negotiations with Syria. He cited the Syrian regime's ongoing support for the Islamist Hamas terrorist organization as a factor mitigating against any negotiations in the near future. In this regard, Olmert explicitly rejected the recommendation in the US government's Iraq Study Group (ISG) report that Israel relinquish the Golan Heights to Syria. "We have a different opinion," Olmert mildly commented, noting that he believes the US president and the leading US administration officials also disagree with the ISG conclusions regarding Syria.
Responding to questions regarding the fitness of Amir Peretz for his current role as defense minister, Olmert said that he would not have appointed Peretz to the post if he thought him unfit. He likened Peretz's role as defense minister to his own as prime minister, saying that until he took office, many may not have thought him the right man for the job either.
Members of the leading opposition party, the Likud, later responded sarcastically to the prime minister's speech on Thursday, saying, "Peretz is suitable to be defense minister just as much as Olmert is suitable to be prime minister."
"The Iranian issue is of great concern to us," Prime Minister Olmert said, "but it is not an Israeli matter alone, and the threat is not just against Israel. While that issue is a weighty one for us, and we are handling it in many different ways, it is first and foremost an issue for the international community." He went on to say that any solution found by the world community that prevents Iran from obtaining nuclear capabilities will satisfy Israel. The prime minister said that he felt less concerned regarding the Iranian threat following his meeting with US President George Bush last month.
Regarding the Palestinian Authority, Prime Minister Olmert expressed again his willingness to make "far-reaching concessions... We will do a great many things to make these negotiations possible." As an indication of his desire for opening a dialog with the PA, the prime minister said that he is prepared to meet the chairman of the PA, Mahmoud Abbas, with no preconditions. In the past, Olmert said he would not meet with Abbas unless abducted IDF Corp. Gilad Shalit was released.
Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman asked Olmert to address the concern that Israel is repeating its mistakes on the Lebanese front by allowing PA-based terrorist organizations in Gaza to massively regroup and re-arm under the cover of the recently arranged ceasefire.
In response, the prime minister declared, "We will not allow that, or anything like it, to develop in the south, and over the last few months we have carried out unprecedented operations. I am happy about the ceasefire and I think that it is a step that we had to reciprocate. Of course, we will not allow and we will not accept a situation in which a force is built up in Gaza that can threaten the peace of a part of the State of Israel."
As for the fate of Corporal Shalit, held by the PA's ruling Hamas faction, Olmert said that Israel is "prepared to do anything that is correct and responsible" to obtain his freedom. The prime minister explained a seeming contradiction between his stated willingness to negotiate Shalit's release, but not to negotiate with Hamas, which is holding the Israeli soldier captive:
"I said that we would not negotiate with Hamas and that we would not hand over prisoners to Hamas, but it was clear that we would negotiate for the release of the hostages [Shalit, as well as Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, held by Lebanon's Hizbullah - ed.], and it could not be any other way. But we did not negotiate with Hamas and the reason the president of Egypt got involved was because we do not want to conduct direct negotiations with the Hamas."
Prime Minister Olmert said that neither does he currently see a chance for negotiations with Syria. He cited the Syrian regime's ongoing support for the Islamist Hamas terrorist organization as a factor mitigating against any negotiations in the near future. In this regard, Olmert explicitly rejected the recommendation in the US government's Iraq Study Group (ISG) report that Israel relinquish the Golan Heights to Syria. "We have a different opinion," Olmert mildly commented, noting that he believes the US president and the leading US administration officials also disagree with the ISG conclusions regarding Syria.
Responding to questions regarding the fitness of Amir Peretz for his current role as defense minister, Olmert said that he would not have appointed Peretz to the post if he thought him unfit. He likened Peretz's role as defense minister to his own as prime minister, saying that until he took office, many may not have thought him the right man for the job either.
Members of the leading opposition party, the Likud, later responded sarcastically to the prime minister's speech on Thursday, saying, "Peretz is suitable to be defense minister just as much as Olmert is suitable to be prime minister."