Netanyahu ready for Middle East peace talks
He and Christopher disagree on Hebron
June 25, 1996
Web posted at: 12:10 p.m. EDT (1610 GMT)JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged Tuesday to resume peace negotiations with Middle East nations, but said Israel's security will be a priority.
Netanyahu made the announcement after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher for the first time since the right-wing Israeli leader was elected last month.
"I want to make it clear that we want to see the advancement towards peace," Netanyahu said at a news conference with Christopher at his side. "The achievement of such progress towards peace is contingent on security."
Christopher agreed.
"Peace must be lasting and secure," he said. "Indeed, real peace without security is not possible and real security without peace is impossible."
Netanyahu, who was elected prime minister May 29 after promising a tough stance in any peace talks, said his new government would resume negotiations with Syria, Lebanon and other Arab nations. Israel also will "expand" peace talks with the Palestinian Authority, headed by Yasser Arafat, he said.
Because Israelis want peace with security, terrorism against Israel must end, Netanyahu said. "Terrorism is incompatible with the advancement towards peace." (213K AIFF or WAV sound)
Christopher said Middle East nations can thwart "enemies of peace" by resuming peace talks. (213K AIFF or WAV sound) He said the countries involved must create "an economic basis for prosperity, so that we can demonstrate that peace is not just an abstraction but that it has a concrete meaning in the lives of the people."
Netanyahu and Christopher said relations between Israel and the United States were strong. Netanyahu described the ties as "solid as a rock," (136K AIFF or WAV sound) while Christopher said they were "unshakable." (145K AIFF or WAV sound)
Christopher's trip was partly intended to solidify relations in preparation for Netanyahu's visit to the United States July 9 to meet with President Clinton.
No commitment on Hebron
On one issue, Netanyahu and Christopher clearly disagreed. The secretary of state went to Jerusalem determined to persuade Netanyahu to withdraw Israeli troops from the West Bank town of Hebron.
Netanyahu agreed to study the matter, including its religious and security aspects. Sacred to both Jews and Muslims, Hebron has been a site of intercommunal violence for decades.
Israel was to have pulled its soldiers from Hebron, where 400 Jewish settlers live among 100,000 Palestinians, last March. But then-Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres delayed the action after Muslim suicide bombings killed 59 people in Israel.
After losing last month's election, Peres decided to let Netanyahu decide on the issue.
"We are studying the question of Hebron in all its complexity -- historical complexity, religious complexity and security complexity of the highest order," Netanyahu said.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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- The day after: Arab summit ends but message lingers - June 24, 1996
- Israel doesn't like Arab summit warnings - June 23, 1996
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