PNA for direct talks with Israel

Jordan: The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) Government will insist that Israel should accept an international force on the borders of a future independent state and showed readiness to negotiate on the issue of settlements, a diplomatic source revealed Saturday. The position of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) was expressed by President Mahmoud Abbas to the acting ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the PNA, Maria Gabriela Bonetti, during a credentials presentation ceremony in the Jordanian capital. Abbas explained that during the recent second round of talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Egypt, the latter refused to accept a foreign military presence to patrol the borders.

The issue of borders was discussed because it is considered a key to making progress on other items, but the nearly five-hour meeting with the presence of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton finished without advances on that item, Abbas said.

The PNA insists on having an intermediate force to protect the stability and integrity of Palestine, and will continue to insist on that even if Israel refuses to accept it, Abbas told Bonetti.

Amman, Prensa Latina