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Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSL199207620070419
Israel Urges Arab League to Agree to Wider Talks
[Reuters] Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni urged the Arab League on Thursday to agree to wider talks instead of setting conditions. She said Israel was prepared to meet with an Arab League working group composed of Egypt and Jordan, but wanted other Arab states that do not already have full relations with Israel to take part from the start. "Israel, on its part, is open to dialogue," Livni said during a closed-door meeting with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates. But she said the Arab League should show "some flexibility" in order to "reinforce the positive steps that Israel takes." At a meeting on Wednesday in Cairo, the Arab League named Egypt and Jordan as the members of a working group which will contact Israel over an Arab peace plan. The Arab League said the working group could be expanded at a later stage if the Israeli government met a list of Arab demands. "The fact today that the Arab League is apparently sending a delegation to Israel, this is of importance," said Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev.