Erekat: no agreement reached on issue of security, borders

Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat denied on Thursday reports that an agreement was reached during Wednesday meeting with Quartet representatives to present comprehensive proposals on borders and security within three months. He told Voice of Palestine radio that these reports were not true, reiterating what came in his statement issued following the meeting with Quartet representatives held in Jerusalem. In that statement, Erekat reaffirmed the PLO position: “We explained to the Quartet that we are prepared to sit at the negotiating table as soon as the Israeli government freezes all settlement construction and accepts clear terms ofreference, specifically the 1967 borders,” he said. “These are not favors that Israel is doing for us. These are its obligations in accordance with international law and the Road Map. Anything short of that will simply put us back on the failed track that we have been on for the last 20 years.” A statement by the Quartet representative issued after the meetings, however, said the Palestinians and Israelis have agreed to present comprehensive proposals on territories and security within three months as stipulated by the Quartet statement issued in New York on September 23. “The Parties agreed with the Quartet to come forward with comprehensive proposals on territory and security within three months in the context of our shared commitment to the objective of direct negotiations leading toward an agreement by the end of 2012,” said the Quartet statement. However, Erekat insisted to Voice of Palestine that this did not happen, stressing that the Palestinians submitted three files on Israeli settlement activities since January, on changes done on the ground in Jerusalem and on prisoners who should be released as promised by former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. In his statement following the Wednesday meeting, Erekat said that “We have no problem with dialogue, but it must be meaningful and cannot be a cover for Israel’s colonization of our land.” He said that “between the months of January 2011 until today, this government has approved the building of thousands of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, with East Jerusalem being most severely affected. This is not an environment in which any meaningful negotiations can begin.” The Palestinian side also brought up the issue of the more than 5000 Palestinians who remain in Israeli prisons. Erekat confirmed that he delivered a letter to the Quartet, on behalf of the PLO Executive Committee, asking for it to support Palestinian efforts to have the Israeli government implement its obligations under a 2008 prisoner agreement between President Mahmoud Abbas and Olmert. “We need the Quartet to explain, in practical terms, what measures it will take to ensure that a future round of negotiations will succeed where countless previous rounds have failed,” said Erekat in his statement. “Issuing statements and press releases is not enough as evidenced by Israel’s continued intransigence. Israel needs to be held accountable through concrete measures and understand that it is not above the law.” However, in their statement, the Quartet representatives said that “both parties expressed their readiness to engage with the Quartet, on the basis of its statement of 23 September, to overcome the current obstacles and resume direct bilateral negotiations without delay or preconditions.” It said that “envoys reiterated the Quartet call of 23 September upon the parties to refrain from provocative actions if negotiations are to be effective.” The Quartet envoys also agreed with the parties to meet regularly for the next 90 days to review progress, said the statement. In addition to Erekat, the Palestinian team included Muhammad Shtayeh, member of Fatah Central Committee.