Jerusalem: Israel's foreign minister on Thursday shrugged off the Palestinian dismissal of a 10-month moratorium on some building in West Bank settlements, saying winning international support was more important.
"The last thing that should interest us is the Palestinians' concern. Before the Palestinian issue, what should interest us is our friends in the world," Avigdor Lieberman told Israel Radio. "We spoke to them and most said 'help us to help you'."
The announcement on Wednesday of the partial freeze was welcomed by the United States. It has been pressing Israel to limit settlement activities in the West Bank to coax Palestinians to renew peace negotiations.
But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's decision, ratified by Lieberman, leader of the far-right Yisrael Beitenu party, and other members of Israel's security cabinet, fell short of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's demands.
Abbas has called for a full halt to settlement construction as a condition for reviving peace negotiations suspended since December. Netanyahu has rejected a complete cessation and Washington has said there should be no preconditions for talks.
Under the Israeli plan, no new residential building permits would be issued and no new residential construction could start for 10 months in "Judea and Samaria," Israel's terms for the West Bank excluding annexed areas around Jerusalem.
However, some 3,000 homes already approved or under construction would be completed during that time.
"The ball is in the Palestinian court," Lieberman said.
But chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said in a statement that "without a settlement freeze there can be no credible negotiations and no credible peace process."
Bureau Report
First Published: Thursday, November 26, 2009, 19:59