Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, visiting in Washington, gave a different message than his cabinet colleagues. He said last night that Israel would be prepared to make \"painful compromises\" regarding the Yesha settlements when the negotiations are resumed. \"We cannot solve everything with force,\" he told reporters upon his arrival in Washington. He further said that Arafat remains Israel\'s peace partner.
Prime Minister Sharon was asked today whether he would agree to stop building in Yesha in exchange for the cessation of violence. His response was strong: \"We will not pay for a cessation of violence, we will not pay for them to stop killing us. We will solve it [in other ways], and it will require some patience, but there will be no payment!\"