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France Holds Talks on Mideast Peace Process
(New York Times) Aurelien Breeden - With the Obama administration having effectively given up on negotiating a deal between the Israelis and the Palestinians, France tried its hand on Friday at making Middle East peace but ended the day with little to show for its efforts. In the months since revealing its initiative in January, France had already tempered its ambitions and its policy positions amid a change in its foreign policy leadership. The French foreign minister at the time, Laurent Fabius, had said that France would unilaterally recognize Palestine as an independent state if the effort failed. Fabius has since been replaced by Jean-Marc Ayrault who is no longer pushing for unilateral recognition of an independent Palestinian state. The meeting on Friday, which lasted only three hours, amounted to little more than an extended photo opportunity. French officials said the meeting was the first step toward fostering a positive environment for the Israelis and the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table. Reacting to the meeting in Paris, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said that the conference "constituted a missed opportunity....History will record that the conference in Paris only hardened the Palestinian position and distanced the chances for peace."