Source: Joint Israel-PA statement to address 'all core issues' - Haaretz

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		Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Jerusalem on Wednesday. (AP)

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Source: Joint Israel-PA statement to address 'all core issues'

By Barak Ravid and Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz correspondents and news agencies

Israel is prepared to make a joint declaration with the Palestinians at the international peace conference scheduled to take place next month in Annapolis that will address the core issues of Jerusalem, refugees and permanent borders, a senior government official told Haaretz Wednesday. Palestinian officials demanded Israel commit to a timetable for negotiations.

The senior source in Jerusalem said that U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is currently visiting the region, had reached an agreement with the Palestinians stating that "the declaration will address all core issues and point to certain avenues to be pursued through negotiation." The official added, however, that the declaration will not offer solutions to any of the aforementioned core issues.

But Rice's dealings with the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah seems to have hit a bump, after she reportedly told the Palestinians that Israel will not commit to a timetable for negotiations. Palestinians sources also said that Israel will not have the so-called Right of Return - the Palestinian demand that they be allowed to return to Israel proper - mentioned in the document.

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Palestinian officials told Haaretz Wednesday that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had canceled a joint press conference with Rice. The officials added that Abbas said the Palestinians "will not attend the conference at any cost." The Israeli and Palestinian negotiation team will meet again Thursday or Friday to resume talks on the joint declaration.

Rice reportedly told the Palestinians that Israel was prepared to commit to what the Palestinians called "a vague mention" of the issue of permanent borders. Israel is not prepared to commit to the 1967 borders, the Palestinian sources reported.

Wrapping up four days of shuttle diplomacy, Rice said Wednesday that while the sides are only beginning the process of negotiations, she is optimistic about success.

"We are showing the parties that there is a basis for moving forward," she said. "It is a stop in a process aimed at achieving a Palestinian state living in peace alongside Israel." Rice also said that the current talks are the most serious the two sides have had about core issues in some time.

U.S. President George W. Bush said Wednesday that it was important for Rice to help Israelis and Palestinians make progress leading into the upcoming conference.

"We believe that now is the time to push ahead with a meeting at which the Israelis and Palestinians will lay out a vision of what a state could look like," Bush said t a White House news conference.

"And the reason why there needs to be a vision of what a state could look like is because the Palestinians that have been made promises all these years need to see there's a serious, focused effort to step up a state," he said.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said Wednesday that the goal of current talks with Palestinians is to reach as wide as possible an understanding
in the time available ahead of an upcoming U.S.-sponsored Middle East peace conference set to take place before the end of the year.

Related articles:

Opinion: Leaving Annapolis unscathed

U.S. National Security Advisor to visit Israel for first time next week

Peres: Government has no intention of dividing Jerusalem

Rice: Timing of summit depends on Palestinian-Israeli progress

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1.	The PA	00:55	\|	Jesse	18/10/07

2.	Another bottle of formaldehyde	01:13	\|	Truths	18/10/07

3.	Up for Grabs...	02:06	\|	Henry	18/10/07

4.	The only solution	02:09	\|	Daniel	18/10/07

5.	Rice says Israel willing to (vaguely) commit to having borders!	02:22	\|	Johnboy	18/10/07

6.	To #2. Arab oil under UN control !!!	02:23	\|	3-ha-ha	18/10/07

7.	2Truths,quite right,this charade is a cover for expansion of	02:30	\|	lakshmi	18/10/07

8.	core issues	02:36	\|	Shmuelshachor	18/10/07

9.	Jesse, I thought about it...	02:57	\|	DumbBlonde	18/10/07

10.	Arabs arent serious about peace, same story, different decade	03:14	\|	David	18/10/07

11.	While this nonesense is going on Abbas	03:21	\|	Avi	18/10/07

12.	Shmeulshacor andcore issues	03:32	\|	Truth	18/10/07

13.	Of course not, Israel doesn`t want a solution. It`s happy now...	05:04	\|	peacelover	18/10/07

14.	Indeed, the time to address all core issues in declaration	05:33	\|	Smadar	18/10/07

15.	Thats it then, time to Anex the teritories	06:02	\|	Jeff	18/10/07

16.	Address all core issues? Easy	07:36	\|	Natallie Durson	18/10/07

17.	#11 I certainly see plenty of nonsense, Avi	08:54	\|	Johnboy	18/10/07

18.	And the award for the peace-saboteurs of the year goes to.....	09:40	\|	Swiss (Dino)	18/10/07

19.	Land Grab	10:02	\|	Daybreak	18/10/07

20.	Don`t give in Israel	10:15	\|	Nechama	18/10/07

21.	Swiss Martin`s awards	10:57	\|	Stan	18/10/07

22.	furthering palestinians suffering will not accomplish anything	22:08	\|	roberta	18/10/07

23.	Basis of Talks	00:03	\|	Neil	19/10/07

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