Abbas suggests NATO presence in Palestinian state

Voice of Israel Radio claimed that the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has suggested to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry that NATO would be in charge of the future Palestinian state.According to the radio, Abbas told The New York Times that he would agree to let Israeli troops remain in the Palestinian state for a transitional period of five years to work with Palestinian and Jordanian security forces, adding that settlements must be removed within the same period.Abbas added that after the five-year transitional period, the Israeli forces could be replaced indefinitely by an American-led NATO force, with troops throughout the territory, at every crossing and within Arab eastern Jerusalem, along with Palestinian Arab police and security units.Abbas said that the future Palestinian state will be demilitarized and will be protected by the Palestinian army, and the NATO troops will stay to reassure the Israeli security and to protect the Palestinians state.The New York Times reported that Abbas rejected the Israeli demand to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, stressing that Israel hadn't asked Egypt and Jordan to do so when they signed the peace treaty with Israel.Abbas concluded that he could not possibly accept a lengthy Israeli military presence in a sovereign Palestinian state, saying, "At the end of five years my country will be clean of occupation."