By Jonathan Ferziger and Gwen Ackerman March 9 (Bloomberg) — Indirect peace talks can help build trust between Israel and the Palestinians, Vice President Joe Biden said as he began meetings with leaders of both sides after they agreed to a U.S.-led format for negotiations. “I hope the indirect talks will be a vehicle by which we can allay that layer of mistrust that has built up over the past years,” Biden said in a Jerusalem meeting today with Israeli President Shimon Peres . Biden’s visit began yesterday with an announcement that Israel and the Palestinians had agreed to participate in a round of U.S.-mediated negotiations that would allow them to discuss peace without actually meeting face-to-face. Israeli-Palestinian talks have been frozen since the end of 2008, when Israel carried out an offensive in the Gaza Strip that it said was intended to stop Hamas from firing rockets at Israeli communities. Previous U.S.-led efforts to revive talks have foundered on the issue of West Bank settlement building, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announcing a partial halt and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas demanding a freeze on all construction. Hours before Biden’s arrival yesterday, Israel disclosed that it had approved the construction of 112 new homes in a West Bank settlement, drawing condemnation from the Palestinian Authority, which called the action “provocative.” U.S. envoy George Mitchell , who announced the sides’ acceptance of the indirect talks, called on “the parties, and all concerned, to refrain from any statements or actions which may inflame tensions or prejudice the outcome of these talks.” Return to Region “We’ve begun to discuss the structure and scope of these talks and I will return to the region next week to continue our discussions,” Mitchell said yesterday in a statement released in Washington. Biden is also meeting with Netanyahu today, and tomorrow travels to the West Bank city of Ramallah to meet Abbas. “I hope indirect talks will be quickly followed by direct talks,” Netanyahu said late yesterday in Jerusalem, according to a text message sent to reporters by his office. “The two principles guiding me are Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and security arrangements that will guarantee Israel’s security in the future.” The format of indirect negotiations enables Palestinians to engage with Israel even though Abbas made a public commitment not to hold talks until all settlement construction is stopped. The foreign ministers of Arab states agreed in Cairo last week to give the “proximity talks” four months and call for an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting if they fail. President Barack Obama raised Arab hopes that the U.S. would apply pressure to Israel with a June 4 speech in Cairo in which he called for a total settlement freeze. Arab leaders expressed disappointment five months later when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton acknowledged that a complete construction halt is unrealistic and praised Netanyahu’s proposal for a limited 10-month freeze as “unprecedented.” Biden is also due to visit Jordan this week. To contact the reporters on this story: Gwen Ackerman in Jerusalem at gackerman@bloomberg.net Jonathan Ferziger in Jerusalem at jferziger@bloomberg.net
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Biden Pushes Indirect Middle East Peace Process With Peres, Abbas Meetings
