Seeking to distract the national agenda from his 10-month construction freeze, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is now calling for direct negotiations between Jerusalem and Damascus.

In a briefing to members of the Knesset Foreign Affairs & Defense Committee, he explained that Israel is prepared for direct talks with the Syrians but if Damascus still refuses, Jerusalem is prepared to enter into mediated talks but France would act as the mediator, not Turkey as in the past.

The prime minister explained that he spoke with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who told him that Syria remains firm, demanding an unconditional Israeli retreat from the entire Golan Heights, a return to the pre-Six Day War boundaries. Israel has repeatedly expressed a willingness to return to the negotiating table without preconditions.

Netanyahu told committee members that he told Sarkozy he prefers Paris over Ankara due to recent hostilities, a breakdown in relations between Israel and Turkey stemming from Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accusing Israel of “war crimes” and “crimes against humanity” in relation to Operation Cast Lead, Israel’s counter-terrorism operation in Gaza.

The prime minister also made reference to the recent visit to Turkey by Minister of Industry & Trade Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, expressing optimism over a return to good relations between the two countries, as was enjoyed in the past.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)