Israeli officials: Possibility of relaunching negotiations soon

Israeli Intelligence Minister Dan Meridor suggested yesterday that there is a strong possibility that Israel and the Palestinian Authority will relaunch negotiations soon.

The Jerusalem Post reports:

The US has been pushing Israelis and Palestinians to start talks immediately, including on final-status issues, with Israeli and Palestinian officials making several trips to Washington in recent days, as momentum has been building following months of miscues.

Meridor stressed, though, that while talks are going on, Israelis and Palestinians need to continue to focus on improving conditions on the ground.

He expressed support for Palestinian plans to build state institutions in the West Bank despite disapproval from other members of the government over the program.

Meridor described Israeli-Palestinian security cooperation at the best it's ever been, and credited the Palestinians with many of the recent improvements in the economic and security conditions in the West Bank.

"There is no terror," he said, adding, "The economic position in Judea and Samaria is improving every day."

But that alone, he said, wasn't sufficient for peace to be made. And, he stressed, "The status quo is not an option."

In a meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Prime Minister Netanyahu said he was ready to start negotiations without pre-conditions.

Netanyahu was also quoted as telling Zapatero "We solved the matter of the settlements with the Americans."