Macron urges direct Palestinian-Israeli talks ahead of Abbas meeting
Paris, Jul 20 (EFE).- France’s president Emmanuel Macron stressed the importance of direct talks between the Palestinians and Israelis to find a solution to the decades-old conflict as he welcomed the Palestinian National Authority president Mahmoud Abbas to the Elysée Palace on Wednesday.
Action must be taken to address “the deep political causes” of the deadlock to avoid future outbreaks of violence, Macron said prior to a meeting with Abbas in Paris.
In the short term, that means an end to the eviction of Palestinian families and destruction of their homes that “prevent” the construction of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, he said.
It also requires “a direct dialogue between Palestinians and Israelis” that, despite being “a path strewn with traps”, is in the interest of both sides and is necessary for their security and to restore a “credible political horizon”, he added.
“I reaffirm my willingness to contribute to the resumption of the (peace process) and to mobilize the international community in support of that in order to put into effect a solution that can lead us to a just and lasting peace,” Macron said.
Abbas, meanwhile, thanked Macron for supporting “a just and lasting peace in the Middle East on the basis of two states.”
He showed his willingness to work with him “to reach peace on the basis of international legality, to end the Israeli occupation of our territory” based on the borders agreed in 1967, including East Jerusalem as its capital, he said.
The meeting in Paris comes less than a week after US president Joe Biden visited Israel and the West Bank, where he admitted that he does not see an immediate path to negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians. EFE
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