PARIS: The Kingdom said on Friday that the basis for any future peace plan between Israelis and Palestinians remained a 2002 Arab offer, and urged Israel to accept it.
“The Arab peace initiative has all the elements for a final settlement,” Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir told reporters after a conference in Paris to revive the quest for a deal. “It is on the table and a solid basis for resolving this long-standing dispute ... we hope that wisdom will prevail in Israel and that they accept this initiative.”
France, meanwhile, warned that a two-state solution to the conflict may soon be impossible. With US efforts to broker an accord in deep freeze for two years and Washington focused on its November presidential election, France hosted a conference with the aim of breaking the apathy over the impasse and stir new momentum.
Neither Israel nor the Palestinians were invited to the conference, though the objective is to get them to negotiate after the US elections.
“The two-state solution is in serious danger. We are reaching a point of no return where this solution will not be possible,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault told a news conference after convening some 25 ministers mainly from the Arab world, Europe and the US.
A final communique said all countries present had reaffirmed the need for a negotiated two-state solution and that direct talks between the two sides should be based on existing UN Security Council resolutions. It warned that the status quo was not sustainable.
“The Arab peace initiative has all the elements for a final settlement,” Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir told reporters after a conference in Paris to revive the quest for a deal. “It is on the table and a solid basis for resolving this long-standing dispute ... we hope that wisdom will prevail in Israel and that they accept this initiative.”
France, meanwhile, warned that a two-state solution to the conflict may soon be impossible. With US efforts to broker an accord in deep freeze for two years and Washington focused on its November presidential election, France hosted a conference with the aim of breaking the apathy over the impasse and stir new momentum.
Neither Israel nor the Palestinians were invited to the conference, though the objective is to get them to negotiate after the US elections.
“The two-state solution is in serious danger. We are reaching a point of no return where this solution will not be possible,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault told a news conference after convening some 25 ministers mainly from the Arab world, Europe and the US.
A final communique said all countries present had reaffirmed the need for a negotiated two-state solution and that direct talks between the two sides should be based on existing UN Security Council resolutions. It warned that the status quo was not sustainable.
