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Israel: Security Must Exist Prior to the Establishment of a Palestinian State

[Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs ] Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni - Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni addressed the Berlin Conference in Support of Palestinian Civil Police and the Rule of Law on Tuesday: We cannot simply determine the border of the Palestinian state, without being able to hand over the keys to an effective and responsible government able to restore law and order - the subject of today's conference - on the other side. Security, law and order are necessary conditions that must exist prior to the establishment of the Palestinian state. Our ability for compromise during negotiations is dependent on real change in these areas, and also upon appropriate arrangements in the agreement. The faith of the Israeli public in the process is dependent on that. Israel will not accept another extreme Islamic state - another terror state in the area - or a situation wherein a state is unable to fulfill its commitments and to control its own territory. Take the example of the Gaza Strip. We disengaged from Gaza; we evacuated settlements and redeployed our military. In return, we got terror. The situation in Gaza must change, and none of us can permit ourselves to take a similar risk regarding the West Bank. The actual security situation in the West Bank, and certainly in Gaza, continues to be difficult. Our ability to remove a roadblock is determined by the security of Israelis on its other side. We must be certain that we are not putting our citizens at risk in any situation.
2008-06-25 01:00:00
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