Barak and Erekat Call on Netanyahu to Honor Agreements on Two-State Solution, End Apartheid System

Barak: Israel must choose two states over apartheid

Date: 10 / 06 / 2009 Time: 13:09
Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies –

Israeli occupation government defense minister Ehud Barak urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept the notion of an independent Palestinian state on Wednesday.

"The current government was formed with the commitment to respect the deals reached by preceding governments," Barak told public radio, according to AFP.

The remarks come ahead of a much-hyped speech in which Netanyahu says he will lay down his policy on peace negotiations. The speech will be delivered on Sunday.

According to Barak, Israel’s prior commitments include "the roadmap which clearly states that the conflict must be resolved on the principle of two states for two peoples," said the head of the center-left Labor party, the most moderate member of Netanyahu's otherwise right-wing government, as quoted by AFP.

"If such a solution fails,” said the former prime minister, “there will be only one political entity from the Jordan Valley to the Mediterranean - the state of Israel.

"Under such a scenario,” he continued, “if the Palestinians have the right to vote, it will no longer be a Jewish state, but a bi-national state. And if they don't have the right to vote, it will be an apartheid regime."

Asked in an interview with the newspaper Haaretz what he thought Netanyahu would say in his upcoming speech, Barak said, "I don't know. I have guesses, but nothing more. The prime minister's discussions are real discussions. This government will surprise people yet."

Also in a statement issued on Wednesday, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat weighed in on the same issue saying that Israel is obligated in its prior commitments to accept the two-state solution.

Erekat: Israel must honor prior commitment to two states

Date: 10 / 06 / 2009 Time: 12:12
Jericho – Ma’an –

The two-state solution and halting settlements are not Palestinian preconditions, but rather terms that Israel had previously committed to, said Saeb Erekat, chief negotiator of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) on Wednesday.

These remarks come as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu comes under pressure from the US to publicly commit to the creation of a Palestinian state, and halt all construction in West Bank settlements, as the basis for renewed negotiations with the Palestinian Authority.

Erekat’s comments came during separate meetings he held with the Japanese foreign minister, Japanese ambassador to Palestine, US Consul General in Jerusalem Jake Walles, and representatives of Switzerland, India, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Venezuela, and Chile.

Erekat stressed that the Israeli government is attempting to evade their previous commitments through “haggling and playing with words.” He said the international community should not accept this.

“Those who are interested in saving peace and achieving the two-state solution know it couldn’t be achieved if the Israeli government continues with its policy of closures, incursions, and targeted assassinations,” a statement from Erekat said.

Barak: Israel committed to previously signed peace deals

Wednesday June 10, 2009 07:15 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agecnies

The Israeli occupation government defense minister, Ehud Barak, stated Tuesday that the Israeli government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu is committed to all previously signed peace deals, including the Road Map Peace Plan which calls for a two-state solution.

Ehud Barak - Image Paltoday

Barak added that the Israeli government should make clear decisions in this regard, and should not obstruct any path that may lead to peace.

His statements came during a conference for the Peace and Security Council held in Tel Aviv.

His statements were made while Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, still rejects to accept a two-state solution and his settler-led government is ongoing with the construction and expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Meanwhile, Moshe Yaalon, Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister stated Tuesday that the American plan to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict within two years and to establish a Palestinian state would lead to what he described as a “Hamastan in the West Bank”.

He believes that peace could need up to five years, and added that “instance peace” will not succeed due to realities on the ground, Israeli Ynet news reported.

After presenting his plan to resolving the Middle East conflict, US president, Barack Obama, gave Netanyahu up to six week to respond to it.

But Yaalon said that the two-state solution should be reexamined as it could turn out to be “not the only viable solution to the Middle East conflict”.

He said that the general perception that the ongoing Israeli occupation and settlements activities are obstructing peace should also be reexamined.

Yaalon called for reexamining the Oslo process, and added that Oslo peace deals have failed.

He further claimed that the Palestinians do not accept the fact that a two-state solution means “two states for two nations”, Israeli Ynet news reported.

He believes that the Palestinians want a Palestinian state while they also want the other state to remain undefined “so it becomes a Palestinian state too”, the Ynet added.

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