American diplomats: US proposals for a deal between Palestinians and Israelis unexpected

American diplomats have ruled out reaching a prospective framework agreement between the Palestinian Authority (PA) and the Israeli occupation based on American proposals.

The diplomats, who preferred to speak on the condition of anonymity, said that a framework agreement based on American proposals needs more time to be achieved.

Meanwhile, American republican senator John McCain, who is close to the right wing government in Israel, said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had expressed “serious reservations” over American proposals.

McCain, who is visiting Israel, said that Netanyahu is concerned about Israel’s ability to defend its borders and about Israel’s credibility regarding the Palestinian state.

Commenting on the American sought framework agreement, the Israeli commentator Ben Caspit said: “It will not be more than an ambiguous document or a broad proposal for prospective reconciliations.”

He explained that it might lead to justifying the extension of negotiations until after the agreed April 29 date; negotiations started last July.

Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said that the PA would not extend negotiations even for “one minute.”

Speaking to the London based newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, Erekat said that the US has not offered any official proposal yet. “It only proposes test balloons and weighs responses,” he said. “Its negotiation behaviour on this issue is very clear.”

He said that the PA wanted to shorten the period of negotiations in order to protect the peace process, but Israel wanted a longer period in order to impose new matters. “We do not need much time,” he said, “everything is clear and fixed – a state on the 1967 borders and Israeli withdrawal.”

Source: Safa