France has given up and officially announced it is postponing its planned peace conference after Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu made his position crystal clear – Israel would not be attending.

France announced the conference months ago, eliciting an immediate response from Israel that it is appreciative, but not attending. PM Netanyahu repeatedly announced that he is ready to resume direct talks with the PA (Palestinian Authority) without preconditions at any time, but he is not going to enter into talks involving third parties such as the French initiative. YWN-ISRAEL reported about a month ago that France was dropping the conference idea, but is was also made official over the weekend.

The outcome of the US presidential elections and the election of President-elect Donald Trump, whose view of the conflict between Israel and the PA (Palestinian Authority) is assumed to differ greatly from that of outgoing President Barak Obama, was likely a contributing factor leading to France’s decision as well.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)