Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's plea on Channel 2 for Israel to accept a two-state solution along the pre-1967 line was lauded by his counterpart Shimon Peres and rejected by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Saturday night.
Peres praised Abbas’s courage stating that Abbas has proved both in word and deed that Israel does have a genuine negotiating partner on the Palestinian side.
"Abu Mazen [Abbas] has condemned terror and has pledged that under his leadership there will not be a third intifada. He understands very well that the solution to the Palestinian refugee problem cannot be within Israeli territory, so as not to change the demographic character of Israel.
“But he has put out a hand to Israel to renew the peace process,” said Peres of Abbas’s Friday night interview.
Peres, who is in frequent contact with Abbas, has persistently stated that Abbas is a responsible and sincere partner for peace, and has reached this conclusion on the basis of their personal conversations.
What Abbas said is a matter of great significance declared Peres, adding that the Palestinian leaders words should be taken with the utmost seriousness.
The desire for peace and a two-state solution also has a broad consensus in Israel Peres stated.
But the Prime Minister’s Office said that the only meaningful gesture Abbas could make would be to sit down and negotiate without preconditions.
In the past Netanyahu has resisted all attempts by Abbas to pre-determine the outcome of such talks.
Netanyahu has consistently refused to accept a two-state solution at the pre-1967 line. He has insisted that Jerusalem must remain Israel’s united capital and that a final status agreement should take into account settlement blocs.
But he has argued that the issue of borders should not be pre-determined, and that this is one of the subjects to be negotiated.
In Paris on Wednesday Netanyahu issued a public call at a press conference for Abbas to renew the negotiations.
On Saturday night, his office said, “The prime minister's proposal to meet with Abu Mazen without any preconditions whatsoever, still stands.
“In relation to what Abu Mazen said (on Channel 2) there is no connection between his words and his deeds.
“Abu Mazen refuses for four years now to renew the negotiations with Israel, and this despite a whole series of steps that Prime Minister Netanyahu has taken to allow for the resumption of talks, including the unprecedented settlement freeze [of housing starts] in Judea and Samaria,” it said.
The office also noted that Abbas has refused to discuss with Israel necessary security arrangements to protect Israeli citizens.
On Friday night, Abbas explained that his demands, such as a freeze on settlement building and Jewish construction in east Jerusalem.
“When we talk about the settlements, the construction is illegal, it's not a precondition,” said Abbas.
“We have 15 Security Council decisions that state this. In spite of this, what I am saying is stop the building until we get to an understanding. But Netanyahu refuses this,” Abbas said.
He explained that he had given Netanyahu two proposals on borders and security, that he had negotiated with former prime minister Ehud Olmert, but Netanyahu would not look at them.
Channel 2 reporter Udi Segal who conducted the interview, countered this statement by asking: “If a prime minister from Israel would put to you on this table, the proposal that Olmert gave you, would you sign it today?”
Abbas responded by explaining that an agreement with Olmert had not been reached. But he said, if a document was placed in front of him that contained the understanding reached between him and Olmert, then “I’m willing to sit and negotiate tomorrow.”
Segal asked, “but you want to start the negotiation from that or this is the end.”
Abbas said, “No from that point.”
Segal said, “So everything he gave you is OK, but now you want more?”
Abbas answered, “We want to complete our negotiations, to bridge the gap on the issues on which we did not have an understanding. Concerning security there was full understanding, about the territories, we exchanged [ideas] and maps but we did not conclude it,” he said.
Abbas said that was needed to restart the negotiations was for Netanyahu to accept a two state solution on the '67 line.
“Can he do it now? And tomorrow I will go and sit with him,” Abbas said.
He explained that the PA is going to the United Nations to ask to upgrade its status to that of a non-member state this month.
“It does not mean that we are looking or seeking an independent Palestinian state, because will be under occupation,” Abbas said.
Segal charged that the move was an attempt to unilaterally seek statehood.
Abbas countered, “if we are talking about unilaterally, I think settlement activity is unilateral, this is an occupied territory you do not have a right to send any of your citizens to live there.”
Segal countered that there was a report by Israeli Judge Edumnd Levy that said it was not occupied territory.
“It is occupied territories. You cannot define things as you like,” Abbas said.
Segal asked him if there was a possibility that a third Intifada would break out.
Abbas answered, “No. As far as I am here in this office, there will be no third armed Intifada. Never. We do not want to use force. We do not want to use terror.”
He also said there was no justification for Palestinian rocket attacks against Israel.
Segal asked him if he wanted to go to Safed, a city inside the pre-1967 border from which he was from.
“Of course, I want to see it. It’s my right to see it, but not to live there,” Abbas said.
Segal asked, “Is It [Safed] Palestine for you?”
Abbas answered. “Palestine, now, for me is '67 borders with east Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever. This is Palestine for me. I am refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe that West bank and Gaza is Palestine and the other part is Israel.”