Israelis, Palestinians meet again in bid to save talks
Latest meeting comes as Washington suggests it may reduce its investment in stalled peace negotiations
Israeli and Palestinian negotiators met on Monday in Jerusalem in a new effort to salvage the teetering US-brokered peace talks, US and Palestinian officials said.
The meeting came as US Secretary of State John Kerry scrambled to rescue negotiations he had kick-started in July, and a week after a fresh impasse saw both sides renege on commitments they made nine months ago.
Kerry has warned there are “limits” to the time and energy the United States can devote to a process that appears to have made no progress amid bitter recriminations and moves Washington has described as “unhelpful.”
The meeting, which included Israeli and Palestinian negotiators together with American intermediary Martin Indyk, was the latest in a string of meetings that both sides say reflect their interest in renewing the talks.
State Department Spokesperson Jen Psaki, said that an earlier meeting on Sunday evening “was serious and constructive, and both sides requested that the United States convene another meeting today to continue the effort.”
Warning that the peace process was on the edge of collapse, an Israeli official close to the talks said that even Kerry, its indefatigable sponsor, was cooling off.
“The way it’s looking now, the talks as they were several weeks ago are no longer relevant,” the source told Israeli news website Ynet.
“Israel is preparing to return to routine dealings with the Palestinians as they were before the negotiations started nine months ago. We are noticing a real coolness in the way the Americans are treating (the peace process), and it’s obvious that today’s Kerry is not the same Kerry from a few weeks ago,” the official added.
A second official, however, said another chance needed to be given to the efforts of Israel’s chief negotiator, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni.
“We have to wait a few more days… A lot of efforts are being done to salvage the situation,” the official said.
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said earlier Sunday that it was up to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “stand tall,” and agree to negotiate based on the 1967 lines.
“I don’t think it’s in the interest of Israel to have a crash, it’s absolutely not in our interest to have a crash, it’s not in the interest of the US,” he told Israel’s Channel 2 on Sunday, adding that the sides were “trying to save” the peace talks.