JERUSALEM: US Mideast envoy George Mitchell pressed the two-state solution on Thursday to sceptical officials in Israel, where hawkish new Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opposes a Palestinian state."US policy focuses on the two-state solution," Mitchell told reporters after holding talks in Jerusalem with Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who has refused to endorse the US-sponsored Annapolis peace process between Israel and the Palestinians.
In response, Lieberman said that "the peace process has reached a dead end" and that "the new (Israeli) government will have to formulate new ideas and approaches," according to a statement from his office.
"The traditional approach has so far led to no solutions or results," Lieberman said.
It marked the latest comments that could set Israel on a collision course with its most important ally, as Washington insists on the principle of a Palestinian state and Netanyahu refuses to endorse the plan.Mitchell flew into Israel late Wednesday in his first trip to the region since Netanyahu assumed his post at the head of a largely right-wing cabinet that has sparked concern over the fate of troubled peace talks.
"In the case of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, we believe that the two-state solution, two states living side by side in peace, is the best and the only way to resolve this conflict," Mitchell said in Morocco on Tuesday.
Courtesy: Channelnewsasia.com
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