Revive Mideast peace - Sarkozy

Warns risk of extremist backlash:

SAUDI ARABIA: French President Nicolas Sarkozy urged Israel and the Palestinians to promptly revive the Middle East peace process or else risk an extremist backlash, in an interview published here Tuesday.

“The priority is to restart as soon as possible the peace process,” Sarkozy, who arrives in Saudi Arabia for a one-day visit later Tuesday, was quoted as saying by the Saudi daily Al-Riyad.

“It is urgent because the current deadlock is the hands of extremists and each day the chance of peace is slipping away a little,” the French president said.

“The deadlock in which we find ourselves today is extremely worrying.

“But sometimes in these moments of great tensions solutions arise, because they give the actors the courage and strength to move forward.

“It is for us to help them,” Sarkozy added, citing in particular the United States, European Union and Russia.

Commenting on talks last week, Sarkozy said he called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to halt to settlements and on Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas to remain “committed” to 2010 elections.

Abbas has announced that he would not stand for re-election in a general poll he called for January 24 due to frustrations with the stalled peace process.

Sarkozy, who also met last week with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, welcomed the willingness of Israel and Syria to resume negotiations, suspended since Israel’s devastating war on Gaza at the turn of the year. Riyadh,, AFP