Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad (right) holds a joint press conference with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso in Ramallah on Sunday. Barroso urged a return to Israeli-Palestinian talks, warning the peace process must not become "an orphan of the Arab Spring." (AFP Photo/Abbas Momani) |
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European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso called on Sunday for a return to Israeli-Palestinian talks, warning the peace process must not become "an orphan of the Arab Spring."
Barroso was speaking after talks with Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad on the first day of a trip which includes stops in the West Bank and Israel.
"The momentous change that we are
witnessing throughout the Arab world should constitute an incitement
and not a deterrent to the resumption of negotiations," he said,
according to an advance copy of his remarks.
Direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians
have been on hold since late September 2010, and efforts by the
peacemaking Quartet -- which groups the EU, United Nations, United
States and Russia -- have had little success.
But Barroso said the European
Union considered resolving the conflict a "strategic priority," and
would continue to work to find a way to bring the two sides back to the
table.
"In this respect it is with
concern that we see the continuous growth of settlements in the West
Bank, including east Jerusalem."
Barroso, who will meet later Sunday in the West Bank city of Ramallah with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, offered support for the reconciliation process between Abbas's Fatah party and the rival Hamas movement which rules Gaza.
"This is a key factor contributing to the unity of a future Palestinian state and to reaching the two-state solution," he said.
And he said that new elections,
which are called for under the reconciliation deal signed last year but
have been delayed as the two sides bicker over implementation of the
agreement, would constitute "a significant contribution to Palestinian
state-building."
"It is important that all
Palestinian actors take advantage of the positive developments towards
democratisation in the region to build a future of democracy, security
and prosperity," his prepared remarks said....READ MORE
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