Rice wasted no time upon her arrival, meeting immediately with top government officials to discuss the deteriorating situation in the Hamas-controlled Palestinian Authority, including Defense Minister Amir Peretz, Deputy Defense Minister Ephraim Sneh, IDF Chief of Intelligence Amos Yadlin and senior security advisor Amos Gilad.
But it was Lieberman who delivered to Rice the hard facts: it is only a matter of time, he said, until the next military operation in Gaza.
If the IDF is forced into such an action this time, Lieberman said, the IDF would not pull out until the deployment of 30,000 NATO troops to ensure the area remains peaceful and quiet.
Peretz, meanwhile, discussed his new, revised version of the Road Map plan as an alternative to the current strategies being considered. Both plans aim to restart negotiations between Israel and the PA for further Israeli concessions.
The Defense Minister also underscored the importance of addressing the issue of Israel’s kidnapped IDF soldiers – officer Gilad Shalit, being held by PA terrorists based in Gaza, and reservists Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, who were kidnapped by Hizbullah terrorists in Lebanon. The whereabouts of all three remain unknown.
After Rice met with Israel’s security officials, she sat with Foreign Minister Tzipy Livni, who went directly to the point: “security for Israelis everywhere, in bombarded Sderot as well.”
According to last week’s issue of Time magazine, Rice stepped on the plane with the intention of trying to convince Israel to skip the first step of the Quartet’s Road Map plan --- a complete cessation of violence as a condition for progress in any other area, including the establishment of an independent Palestinian Authority state.
Although Livni has agreed in meetings with Rice on the need for a two-state solution, she said, this did not mean the safety of the Israeli civilian could be sacrificed in achieving that diplomatic goal. “My statements were misunderstood,” Livni said at the brief news conference that followed her meeting with the U.S. Secretary of State. “I support a dialogue, but not giving up on stages.”
Livni added that “no steps would be passed over,” in moving towards negotiations between Israel and the PA.
“We will continue with our efforts,” said Livni . “The objective is clear, two states living side-by-side in peace. The elections in the Palestinian Authority have made matters more complicated. Our responsibility is to give the Palestinians a political horizon as well as to provide safety to Israelis in Sderot. I want to personally thank the U.S. Secretary of State for her determination and understanding,” she said.
But it was Lieberman who delivered to Rice the hard facts: it is only a matter of time, he said, until the next military operation in Gaza.
If the IDF is forced into such an action this time, Lieberman said, the IDF would not pull out until the deployment of 30,000 NATO troops to ensure the area remains peaceful and quiet.
Peretz, meanwhile, discussed his new, revised version of the Road Map plan as an alternative to the current strategies being considered. Both plans aim to restart negotiations between Israel and the PA for further Israeli concessions.
The Defense Minister also underscored the importance of addressing the issue of Israel’s kidnapped IDF soldiers – officer Gilad Shalit, being held by PA terrorists based in Gaza, and reservists Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, who were kidnapped by Hizbullah terrorists in Lebanon. The whereabouts of all three remain unknown.
After Rice met with Israel’s security officials, she sat with Foreign Minister Tzipy Livni, who went directly to the point: “security for Israelis everywhere, in bombarded Sderot as well.”
According to last week’s issue of Time magazine, Rice stepped on the plane with the intention of trying to convince Israel to skip the first step of the Quartet’s Road Map plan --- a complete cessation of violence as a condition for progress in any other area, including the establishment of an independent Palestinian Authority state.
Although Livni has agreed in meetings with Rice on the need for a two-state solution, she said, this did not mean the safety of the Israeli civilian could be sacrificed in achieving that diplomatic goal. “My statements were misunderstood,” Livni said at the brief news conference that followed her meeting with the U.S. Secretary of State. “I support a dialogue, but not giving up on stages.”
Livni added that “no steps would be passed over,” in moving towards negotiations between Israel and the PA.
“We will continue with our efforts,” said Livni . “The objective is clear, two states living side-by-side in peace. The elections in the Palestinian Authority have made matters more complicated. Our responsibility is to give the Palestinians a political horizon as well as to provide safety to Israelis in Sderot. I want to personally thank the U.S. Secretary of State for her determination and understanding,” she said.