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Ayalon: Any peace negotiations with Syria must be direct

Israel is not interested in resuming indirect talks with Syria, Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said in an interview with Reuters Wednesday. He said that any new peace talks should be direct, rather than being brokered by Turkey. The reason that talks have not succeeded, Ayalon said, was "Syrian intransigence," adding that Israel had "enormous respect and great appreciation for the Turkish efforts." Turkey mediated four rounds of indirect talks between Israel and Syria last year, which broke down at the beginning of Operation Cast Lead in December 2008.