Israel's FM urges replacement of Abbas

Israel's foreign minister called on the Middle East Quartet to work to replace Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, saying new leadership is needed for peace. "The Palestinian Authority is a despotic government riddled with corruption. ... Due to Abbas' weak standing and his policy of not renewing negotiations, which is an obstacle to peace, the time has come to consider a creative solution, to think outside the box, in order to strengthen the Palestinian leadership," Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said in a five-page letter sent Tuesday and published by Haaretz Wednesday. A new Palestinian leadership is more likely to progress in peace talks with Israel, he said. The letter was sent to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Haaretz reported. The Quartet, comprised of the United States, the United Nations, Russia and the European Union, was formed in 2002 to mediate the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Abbas is "uninterested or unable" to "reach an agreement that would bring an end to the conflict, including addressing all the core issues. ... He is creating a culture of blaming Israel for delaying the process while attempting to achieve advantages without negotiations via blackmail and an ongoing attempt to internationalize the conflict," Lieberman said. The Palestinian president focuses dialogue with the international community on settlements, Lieberman said, adding, "This damaging attitude does not reflect the reality on the ground." Israeli settlements constitute approximately 1 percent of the West Bank, the last settlement built by Israel in 1991, Lieberman noted. He then outlined steps taken by Israel toward peace, including the peace treaty with Egypt in 1979 in which Israel evacuated military bases and settlements in the Sinai. In 2005 Israel evacuated all Gaza Strip settlements hoping for peace, and in return was hit by more than 14,000 rockets fired at southern Israel, he said. "Both peace accords with Egypt and Jordan were signed when settlements existed. The claim that settlements are the obstacle to peace is unfounded," Lieberman says. Lieberman also spoke about the numerous gestures Israel has made to the Palestinian Authority in recent months aimed at "bolstering the Palestinian economy."