Olmert, Abbas Agree To Work Toward Two-state Solution

[cbressler1976]

OLMERT, ABBAS AGREE TO WORK TOWARD TWO-STATE SOLUTION
September 11, 2007

Xinhuanet.com reports: “During their meeting Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian National Authority (PNA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas reached an agreement to setup working groups to discuss issues pertaining to the two-state solution.
The two leaders met in Jerusalem earlier on Monday, which was attended for the first time by Prime Minister Salaam Fayyad of Palestinian caretaker government.
In a joint statement, Olmert and Abbas said that they wanted to contribute to the success of a planned international meeting on Meddle East peace, and stressed their commitments for a two-state solution and decided to appoint teams to advance this goal.
During the first part of the meeting, which was also attended by Fayyad and some other Israeli and Palestinian officials, Abbas asked Olmert to release Palestinian prisoners as a goodwill gesture for the holiday of Ramadan.
In response, Olmert agreed to propose Abbas' request to his cabinet, but the two sides did not discuss the number of prisoners to be released.
According to the statement, the two leaders also discussed cooperation of security. Olmert said that he fully understands the importance of the freedom of movement for the Palestinians and he hopes to make progress on the issue soon.
The plan for boosting the movement between Palestinian cities is expected to be submitted to the prime minister on Sunday.
Fayyad spokes about his role in building the Palestinian security and civil organizations, and the future relations between the two governments.
Olmert accepted a request made by Fayyad to send aid to security prisoners jailed in Israel, including food, drinks and cigarettes. Israeli officials believed that Fayyad's presence was significant because it showed that the two sides are beginning to concentrate on the governing aspect of a Palestinian state, rather than just the idea of having one…”

[cbressler1976]

Israeli, Palestinian leaders meet
By LAURIE COPANS, Associated Press Writer Mon Sep 10, 2:36 PM ET


JERUSALEM - In a meeting with the Palestinian leader, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Monday proposed freeing some prisoners, lifting some West Bank roadblocks, and creating a team to work on a broad agreement ahead of a U.S.-sponsored peace conference in November. Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas agreed in their three hours of talks in Jerusalem to set up a top-level team to discuss "ways of advancing the peace process and of reaching a two-state solution" — the stated goal of the Palestinians, Israel and the U.S., said Olmert spokesman David Baker.
Later Monday, Abbas called the talks "successful" and said two working groups would be set up.
In July, President Bush called for a Mideast peace conference, and the U.S. wants Israel and the Palestinians to make significant progress in their talks ahead of it. The Palestinians hope to achieve the outlines of a final peace deal and warn that the conference would be a failure without such an announcement.
Olmert hopes to bolster Abbas and his Western-backed government in the West Bank after the Islamic Hamas seized power in the Gaza Strip in June. Abbas' subsequent ouster of Hamas from the Palestinian government has freed the moderate leader to pursue peace efforts with Israel.
Hamas took another step Monday to solidify its control over Gaza, announcing plans to appoint judges to replace the ones now in office. They refused to deal with the Hamas regime.
With their summit meetings becoming frequent, the two leaders appeared to be easing into a comfortable routine. With official photographers snapping pictures, Abbas and Olmert alternated smiles and serious expressions as they talked quietly at the entrance to Olmert's official residence. Journalists were kept far away.
At the summit, Olmert offered gestures — releasing some Palestinian prisoners during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan that begins this week and pressing Israel's defense establishment to ease travel restrictions in the West Bank, Olmert spokeswoman Miri Eisin said.
Abbas has sought a release of Palestinian prisoners to shore up his public standing. Israel holds about 11,000 Palestinian prisoners, and their fate is an emotional issue in Palestinian society.
Abbas and Olmert also agreed to set up several professional teams to deal with subjects that must be settled before a final status agreement such as water, the environment, energy, economics and infrastructure, Eisin said.
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat confirmed the leaders agreed to "form working teams to work on achieving the two-state solution." He said the two would meet again within two weeks.
Erekat also said Abbas asked Israel to remove 16 major West Bank checkpoints, but Olmert made no firm commitment.
Palestinians say the roadblocks are strangling their economy and severely disrupting daily life. Israel says they are necessary to prevent suicide bombings and other attacks.
Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad participated in the talks for the first time. Fayyad, an internationally respected economist, took over after Abbas dismissed the Hamas premier, Ismail Haniyeh.
Israeli media have reported that the sides have already begun tackling the central issues. An Olmert confidant, Vice Premier Haim Ramon, has offered a pullout from almost all of the West Bank in talks with Fayyad on a final-status peace deal, according to the reports. The Palestinians say there were no such talks.
The key issues are borders, which would require an Israeli pullback from at least parts of the West Bank, control over Jerusalem, and a solution for Palestinian refugees and their descendants from the 1948 war that followed Israel's creation.
Analysts question whether either Olmert or Abbas is strong enough politically to make the concessions that would be needed for agreements on those issues.

Israel captured the West Bank and east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians demand a total pullout, but Israel insists on adjustments.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is expected in the region next week for talks to prepare for the November conference. Olmert and Abbas are scheduled to meet every two weeks leading up to the conference.
The "Quartet" of Mideast mediators — the U.S., European Union, Russia and U.N. — is to convene in Washington this month and meet Arab League representatives, who have been promoting an Arab plan for a comprehensive peace with Israel.
The Monday summit came alongside some good news for Abbas — a poll showing that nearly three-quarters of Palestinians oppose the Hamas takeover of Gaza.
The survey also said that if presidential elections were held today, Abbas would win with 59 percent of the vote, compared with 36 percent for Haniyeh. Past surveys showed them virtually tied. The poll was conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, an independent think tank based in Ramallah. The agency questioned 1,270 Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem between Sept. 6-8, and the survey quoted a margin of error of 3 percentage points.