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Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6AI1AM20101119
Israel and U.S. Struggling to Conclude Settlement Freeze Pact
(Reuters) Crispian Balme - Talks between Israeli and U.S. officials aimed at reviving Middle East peace negotiations have hit snags over incentives promised by Washington to persuade Israel to resume a freeze of Jewish settlement building. An Israeli official said on Friday the U.S. appeared reluctant to commit to paper all the promises Netanyahu says he was offered verbally last week. The latest snag concerned a pledge that Israel says U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made to provide the country free of charge 20 F-35 stealth warplanes worth $3 billion. Netanyahu's coalition allies demanded a written pledge from the U.S. to make clear the building freeze did not include east Jerusalem and to spell out there would be no U.S. pressure for any subsequent moratoria. The Israeli official said there appeared to be a disconnect between the White House and State Department, with Obama unhappy that Clinton had offered so much. However, he added that Netanyahu's office thought a deal could be reached in the coming hours and that the prime minister would get the necessary backing from his cabinet at the weekend.