JERUSALEM: The Palestinians rejected US proposals for Israel to keep a military presence in a future Palestinian state, as US Secretary of State John Kerry wrapped up his latest peace push.
Kerry, on his way to Vietnam, made a stop in Jerusalem and the West Bank city of Ramallah in a bid to promote his security plans for a future Palestinian state in his second visit in less than a week.
On Thursday night he met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and on Friday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before leaving snow-hit Jerusalem for Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv, media reported.
“I’m delighted to be here. I’m on my way to Asia, heading to Vietnam and the Philippines, which is a long-promised trip,” Kerry told reporters as he went into his talks with Netanyahu.
“But I wanted to come through here in an effort to try to continue our important discussions.
“It’s been constructive. It’s always complicated,” he said.
“We have a lot to talk about, and we will continue this process.”
Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon had also been due to attend the Kerry-Netanyahu talks, but his spokesman said the weather prevented him from doing so.
After meeting Kerry in Ramallah, the Palestinian political capital, Abbas rejected US proposals for Israel to keep troops in a future Palestinian state along its strategic border with Jordan.
“President Abbas has rejected the ideas presented by the secretary of state,” a Palestinian source said on Friday.
Abbas also handed Kerry a letter laying down “Palestinian red lines”, the source added, singling out “the refusal to recognise Israel as a Jewish state”.
Abbas “rejected the ideas on security because there is not a third party”.
This refers to a plan by former US national security adviser James Jones under which a third party would deploy along the Palestinian-Jordanian border.
The Palestinian source said that “all disputed issues must be settled”.
Israeli and Arab media reports say the plan envisaged by Washington would see Israel maintain a military presence on the border after a peace agreement with the Palestinians.
According to pan-Arab daily Al Quds Al Arabi, the plan also includes the deployment of early warning stations on the highest point in the West Bank, an Israeli right to deny entry to anyone through the Jordan Valley border crossing and joint Israeli-Palestinian patrols in the area.
An international force would be acceptable to the Palestinians, but Israel opposes such a solution.
AFP
