Israel slammed the Paris summit, saying it distanced prospects for a real peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations (UN) slammed Sunday’s Paris conference on the diplomatic process between Israel and the Palestinians, saying the deliberations were completely “detached from reality.”
“The Paris conference is so detached from reality that it has extended a hand towards Palestinian obstructionism instead of towards peace,” Danon stated. “Rather than advancing a joint effort to battle global terrorism, the conference focused obsessively on Israel as part of an attempt to push forward a last minute initiative just days before the new US administration takes office.”
Jerusalem fears that the US administration will support another anti-Israel resolution at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) just days before President Barack Obama leaves office, despite Secretary of State John Kerry’s denial that it will do so. The resolution could be based on the closing statements at the Paris conference
While objecting to the actions of the current US administration, Danon expressed hope towards a better relationship with the incoming Trump team. “In the next few weeks we will enter a new era and work with the incoming US administration to undo the damage caused by the Security Council resolution and these other one-sided initiatives,” Danon said.
At the Paris summit, 70 countries called on Israel and the Palestinians to restate their commitment to a peace settlement and to refrain from unilateral actions.
Israel was concerned that the summit would adopt a harsh statement and seek further action against Israel at the UNSC.
Israel Radio quoted sources in Jerusalem saying that diplomatic efforts by the Prime Minister’s Office, the National Security Council and the foreign ministry led to a significant softening of the wording of the final statement.
According to the sources in the report, Israel succeeded in preventing the statement from being transferred to the UNSC for further action as a result of its heated reaction to the passage of the UNSC’s anti-Israel resolution last month.
Can Kerry be Trusted?
On Sunday, US Secretary of State John Kerry, who attended the Paris meeting, telephoned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and briefed him on steps the US was planning to take to soften the wording of its final statement. Kerry reportedly assured Netanyahu that there would be no follow-up to the Paris conference at the UNSC and that Washington would oppose any resolution brought before the UNSC.
Speaking to reporters after the summit, Kerry said, “We did what was necessary to have a balanced resolution. And if you look at it, it speaks in positive ways, rather than negative, to both sides.”
French President Francois Hollande stressed at the summit the need to renew talks between Israel and the Palestinians for the security of Israel and the entire region, warning that otherwise, Palestinian terrorism and the existence of Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria could destroy all hope for the two-state solution.
Hollande claimed that the objective of the conference was not to dictate policy to the sides, saying that only direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians can lead to peace. He also urged the participating nations at the conference to support peace efforts by offering economic incentives to the parties.
Neither Israeli nor Palestinian leaders attended the summit.
Netanyahu, who opposed the French initiative from its inception, charged during the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday that the summit was coordinated between the French and the Palestinians, with the objective of imposing conditions on Israel that did not correspond with its national interests.
He said the summit only distanced peace, as it hardened the Palestinians’ conditions and kept them away from direct negotiations without preconditions.
By: Max Gelber, United with Israel