Will ‘carefully study’ Trump’s Mideast peace plan: France

Jan 29, 2020
Paris: France on Wednesday welcomed US President Donald Trump’s latest plan to end the decades-long conflict between Israel and Palestine, adding it will study the US proposals closely.

“France welcomes President Trump’s efforts and will carefully study the peace plan he has presented, while remaining attentive to respecting and taking into account the legitimate aspirations of both Israelis and Palestinians,” the French foreign ministry said in a statement, Xinhua reported.

It recalled Paris’ “conviction that the two-state solution, in accordance with international law and internationally agreed parameters, is necessary for the establishment of a fair and lasting peace in the Middle East.”

At a White House ceremony attended by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump announced on Tuesday a plan that would allow the creation of a Palestinian state with a capital in parts of East Jerusalem, while Jerusalem would remain Israel’s undivided, sovereign capital.

Under the proposed plan, the US would recognise Israeli settlements on the occupied West Bank. In exchange, Israel would agree to a four-year freeze on new settlement activities during the negotiation over Palestinian statehood parameters.

Brokered by the US, the last direct peace negotiations between Palestine and Israel stopped in April 2014, as the rival camps failed to come to an agreement due to differences on major issues like settlement, security, borders and the recognition of a Palestinian state. IANS