Ayalon: Israel indifferent to outcome of US election

Israel is indifferent to the outcome of the US presidential election as the Jewish state will continue to enjoy bi-partisan American support irrespective of who wins, Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon told Israel Radio Tuesday morning.

Responding to whether Israel expects a potentially re-empowered Barack Obama to apply pressure on Israel to make concessions to the Palestinians, Ayalon stressed that "Israel does not need any pressure in order to make peace or to reach diplomatic agreements."

With respect to Mahmoud Abbas' controversial interview last week with Channel 2, in which he made statements widely construed as a renouncement of the Palestinian "right of return," Ayalon said that if the PA president really believes it, then he should say the same thing in Ramallah, in Gaza, and at the Arab League offices in Cairo.

Ayalon then pointed to comments subsequently made by Abbas' aide, Abu Rudeineh, suggesting the Palestinian leader's real intent was to influence Israel's upcoming election.