Livni: Security being used as an excuse not to pursue peace

Justice minister says US can provide assurances that 2-state solution won't harm security.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
Tzipi Livni 370 (photo credit: Courtesy The Tzipi Livni Party)
Tzipi Livni 370
(photo credit: Courtesy The Tzipi Livni Party)
Justice Minister Tzipi Livni laid out her case for resuming negotiations with the Palestinians on Tuesday, claiming that some in Israel were using security as an excuse not to engage in a peace process.
"In the Middle East, the choice is between bad options, but doing nothing is more damaging," Livni stated at an Israel Project conference.
Livni attempted to debunk the argument that concessions for peace would harm Israel's security, saying that engaging in talks would give Israel the legitimacy to take the necessary actions to defend itself. She said, in addition, that "the US can provide assurances that the two-state solution won't harm security."
The Justice Minister said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu fully supports her efforts to relaunch peace talks based on a two-state solution and Bayit Yehudi leader Naftali Bennett, who has spoken out recently about the dangers concessions pose to Israel's security ,"has said he can live with talks."
Livni touted the importance of the Arab League announcement last month that it supports a two-state solution based on the pre-1967 lines with agreed upon land swaps. "The Palestinian leader needs the support of the Arab world to sign an agreement with Israel."
She called on the international community, especially Europe, to tell Abbas that they supported his UN statehood bid so that he would return to negotiations with Israel.
Abbas has said repeatedly that he will not return to peace talks unless Israel accepts the pre-1967 lines as a starting point and agrees to halt all building in settlements.