Abbas: '67 borders precondition to talks

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Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said he would be the first to negotiate with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, but only if the latter would cease construction in the settlements and recognize the 1967 borders of a Palestinian state, Israel Radio reported Wednesday, quoting Qatari newspapers.

Abbas also said that Netanyahu's recent statements following his visit to Cairo, in which the Israeli premier called for the resumption of peace talks, were vague and needed clarification.

Speaking at the Sheraton Doha, Abbas was quoted by Qatari daily Gulf Times commenting on the failed reconciliation attempts with Hamas, explaining that negotiators from the rival faction had kept asking for last-minute amendments in what was an attempt to halt the reconciliation process.

"Going through the whole gamut of things again means a delay of another two years and that is what Hamas wants," he said.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1262339407823&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[stray cat]

1. That makes things really easy - no talks on the horizon

[aranthus]

2. What's really going on here?

Abbas keeps piling on new conditions for even having talks, and he has to know that Israel won't agree to this one. So, he's just posturing, but why? Thoughts anyone?

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3. Posturing is what politicians do.

My guess is nothing in particular is going on here.

[Douglas Carpenter]

4. given that Netanyahu has already promised the settler movement that any freeze would be one time

and temporary - he has also stated publicly that there wouldn't be anymore evacuations of settlements - Was Netanyahu just posturing?

I hope so. Because if he wasn't, I can't imagine what there would be talk about - if the point of the talks is to move toward

a two-state solution.