French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault admits that while not being naïve, he is aware that Israel and the PA (Palestinian Authority) are far apart and he is acting in “good faith” in the hope of bringing the sides closer together.

Ayrault announces his country plans to host a Mideast peace conference on May 30th with the goal of jumpstarting talks between Israel and the PA by the end of 2016. He emphasizes “There is no other alternative to the two-state solution, with Israel and the PA living side by side with a shared capital”.

Back in January 2016, Israel announced it was rejecting France’s call for an international peace conference. It remains to be seen how Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will react to this latest French initiative.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)