Israelis and Palestinians have agreed to intensify peace talks aimed at reaching a final agreement, not an interim accord, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday.The two sides met on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York at a conference of donors looking for ways to revive the fragile Palestinian economy.
Speaking before the closed-door meeting known as the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee, Kerry said the goal of talks between Israel and the Palestinians is a "final status agreement", not an interim one.
On Tuesday, President Barack Obama met Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, and he plans to meet Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu next week in Washington.
Both sides expressed their commitment to the peace talks at the Ad Hoc meeting and noted the determination of the US, and Kerry in particular, to move the process along.
"This is a 50-year-old conflict, and it's inevitable that we have to find closure to it," Palestinian Finance Minister Shukri Bishara said.
"It's impossible to continue as is." The new Palestinian new finance minister called Wednesday's economic talks "very, very successful".
The donor meeting asked Israel to ease some of the restrictions that have hurt employment, trade and other crucial areas of the Palestinian economy.
| What do the Paleos give in return? |
| Don't be absurd. |
| I was just asking... |
The donors on Wednesday also asked the Palestinians to rein in expenditures and take steps to "develop a business-friendly environment".
| Like stop shooting investors in the feet... |
| And the donors asked, instead of saying, "Cut spending or you don't get any more"? |
| Much of the money is thrown away on guns, ammo and rockets. The rest is thrown away maintaining the kleptocracy. Only the stupid give the Paleos money. That includes Uncle Sugar, of course... |
"We are particularly conscious of the fact that we can't build a state that almost totally depends on foreign grants," Bishara told reporters after the meeting. But he stressed: "We have to ensure that one state is close in its standard of living to the other state." The income gap between Israel and the Palestinians remains vast.
| The Paleos have two ways to fix that -- build their own state or tear down the Israelis. Guess, just guess which way they're going to go... |
Both sides have resumed dialogue between finance ministers, Steinitz said. Other moves include another 5,000 employment permits for Palestinians and allowing more water and construction and cellular equipment into the Gaza Strip.