Brussels, 23/06/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 23 June, Israel's President Reuven Rivlin said he thought that only direct discussions between the Israelis and the Palestinians would enable trust to be built between the parties.
“Direct discussions are the only way possible to build trust and restore the conditions for the outlook of peace between Israelis and Palestinians”, he said at the end of his meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini. “There are no shortcuts or detours in the Middle East”, he added. Juncker also thought that the “lack of trust was the main problem in this complicated region”.
In Rivlin's view, it is the responsibility of the leaders to create bridges between the two peoples. “Even if we can't reach a lasting agreement, we must be active and build more trust between the parties”, he said. “We won't be able to create trust if we don't begin to talk directly and look at what we can do, what can be done - and not what can't be done A lot, a lot can be done”, Rivlin stated. He regretted the fact that President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas had refused to meet him in Brussels. Mogherini did not wish to react to this comment. “No on can replace the resolve of the two parties to be involved in direct negotiations”, she said. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)