By KUNA
Paris : France said on Wednesday that Israel must make gestures and agree to compromises if peace is to move forward, and the French government urged the Israelis to make “efforts and sacrifices” to arrive at a final agreement with the Palestinians.
Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said on “Europe 1″ earlier that Israel must be ready to make a number of sacrifices in the peace process, a position that was echoed by the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Pascale Andreani.
Everyone knows that negotiations do not advance without all (parties) consenting to compromise,” she said at a briefing.
“In the case of the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, it is necessary to make efforts and sacrifices to arrive at a final settlement,” she added.
“As of today, it is important to give credibility to the peace process and to the Palestinian Authority by freezing settlements and by significantly improving the living conditions of the Palestinians.” Andreani also stated that “restarting the Palestinian economy needs an improvement in movement of people and goods, without jeopardizing Israeli security.” Israel has effectively locked down the Palestinian areas and has some 450 checkpoints controlling all movement between those areas, which paralyses commerce and causes hardship for families.
The French spokeswoman also highlighted the importance of perceptions of how the peace process is evolving.
This is particularly important at a time of increasing violence, major Israeli operations against Gaza and the West Bank, with a high number of casualties, not to mention the first suicide bombing in Israel in over a year.
“Symbolic measures would equally contribute to giving credibility to the process, such as the release of prisoners, as well as the opening of the Palestinian Chamber of Commerce and Orient House” in Jerusalem, the French official said.