Bethlehem – Ma’an – European Union foreign ministers on Tuesday called on Israelis and Palestinians to negotiate a solution wherein Jerusalem would become the capital of both their states.
"If there is to be a genuine peace, a way must be found through negotiations to resolve the status of Jerusalem as the future capital of two states," EU foreign ministers agreed in a statement to released on Tuesday. [Click here to view the full text of the declaration.]
“The European Union will not recognise any changes to the pre-1967 borders including with regard to Jerusalem, other than those agreed by the parties. '' the ministerial resolution said.
The statement also expressed "readiness, when appropriate, to recognise a Palestinian state."
The EU ministers said they “takes positive note of the recent decision of the Government of Israel on a partial and temporary settlement freeze as a first step in the right direction and hopes that it will contribute towards a resumption of meaningful negotiations. “
The final statement also expressed concerned about Israeli policies in Jerusalem and in Gaza.
"The Council is deeply concerned about the situation in East Jerusalem. In view of recent incidents, it calls on all parties to refrain from provocative actions,” the statement said. “The Council recalls that it has never recognised the annexation of East Jerusalem."
The document further "calls for the reopening of Palestinian institutions in Jerusalem in accordance with the Roadmap. It also calls on the Israeli government to cease all discriminatory treatment of Palestinians in East Jerusalem."
Finally the statement also said Israel’s closure of the Gaza Strip’s borders is "unacceptable and politically counterproductive."
A 'victory' for the future Palestinian state
The caretaker government's Prime Minister Salam Fayyad welcomed the EU proposal, considering it a victory in the quest for the international recognition of a Palestinian state.
“This position forms an important stage on the road for the international community to take direct responsibility to end the Israeli occupation on the 1967 Palestinian lands, enable the Palestinian people to achieve self-determination, and establish their independent state with full sovereignty with East Jerusalem as its capital,” Fayyad said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
Fayyad stressed that the EU proposal was necessary to recognize the references of the peace process, which are based on the decisions of the UN Security Council and the Arab Peace Initiative, he said, adding that the EU position on east Jerusalem will pave the way for the EU to play a significant role in the political process, in cooperation with the Quartet.
"The time has come for the Israeli leadership to understand that there is no benefit to continuing to bypass the rules of international law and resolutions, and it is useless for Israel to continue to seek imposing a series of 'fait accompli' policies in the territories. Israel is not above the law and is not the only player," he added.
In particular, the prime minister praised the EU's stance on a settlement standstill and the re-establishment of Palestinian institutions in east Jerusalem, and particularly the call to end the devastating siege on Gaza and to open all its border crossings to allow the unlimited flow of humanitarian aid into the Strip.
'Disappointing' draft
However, former Palestinian Minister of Information Mustafa Barghouthi told Ma’an that the draft leaked to media on Tuesday was weak compared with an original draft introduced by Sweden.
“It’s disappointing. The original draft was much better,” he said.
Barghouthi said the call for negotiations was inappropriate at a time when “the most extreme right-wing government is obstructing peace negotiations.”
He said the government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had set “impossible conditions” on all issues, including Jerusalem, borders, settlements, and water. “What is left to negotiate?”
“What we need today is pressure on Israel similar to the pressure that was applied on Apartheid South Africa,” Barghouthi said in a phone interview.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem along with the West Bank as a whole in 1967. Israel later claimed to have annexed a swath of the central West Bank as a part of Jerusalem, which it declared its “eternal” capital.
The international community does not recognize Israeli sovereignty in areas east of the 1967 Green Line. Foreign governments maintain their embassies in Tel Aviv, and Palestinian residents of Jerusalem reject Israeli citizenship.
Israel welcomes statement
Israel also tentatively welcomed the EU declaration, saying it was better than the original proposal.
“In light of the extreme draft originally presented by the Swedish presidency at the start of discussions, Israel does welcome the fact that at the end of the process the voices of the responsible and reasonable EU states prevailed, balancing and improving the text,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The Israeli mayor of Jerusalem, Nir Barkat, released a statement saying he "completely rejects the decision of the EU to support the division of Jerusalem, calling it a real danger for the future of Jerusalem that will never work."
"Mayor Barkat noted that the recent celebration of the 20th anniversary of the reunification of Berlin reminds us that no divided city in the history of the world has functioned properly," the statement added.
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