Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reaffirmed on Monday that he has no intention of talking peace with Syria in the near future.

"I don't intend to enter talks with Syria," Olmert said at an Israeli Management Center Conference on Postwar Israel. "I don't think it is realistic at this point in time. It can only hurt efforts in coming to an arrangement with the Palestinians. Instead the government will work towards creating a common platform for talks with additional countries such as Egypt and Jordan in order to make progress on an arrangement with the Palestinians."