Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept. 30 /Trend, V.Sadikhova/
Next week the Palestinian National Authority will announce its withdrawal from direct talks with the Israelis after the meeting of foreign ministers of the League of Arab States (LAS), spokesman Ziad Abu Ein told Trend.
"The Palestinian Authority will not announce its decision separately, and do it at a meeting of foreign ministers of Arab states, who will come together on Oct. 6. Perhaps, then the termination of the peace negotiations will be announced, the responsibility for which falls entirely on Israel," Abu Ein said by telephone from Ramallah.
Direct peace dialogue, which the Palestinians and Israelis resumed after two-year break in early September, appeared in jeopardy because of the disagreement of Israel to extend the moratorium on the construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, which expired on Sept. 26.
In response, the Palestinian Authority announced that it will not continue the negotiations mediated by the Quartet on the Middle East (Russia, U.S., EU and UN), but referred the matter to the consideration of the League of Arab States, which will meet next Wednesday in Cairo.
Abu Ein mentioned the full support of the Arab states to the position of Palestinians not to continue negotiation unless the moratorium is extended on building settlements.
Unlike the previous pressure of the Arab states on Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to resume the direct dialogue with the Israelis, this time the LAS fully supports the position of the Authority.
"The upcoming meeting will be very great support to the position of the Palestinian Authority. At this stage, there is complete understanding and unanimity between the Arab states on the future of peace talks, said the Palestinian official. - The Arab position is that talks with Israel can not continue, while settlement activities continue in the occupied territories. "
Along with the Palestinian Authority, the Arab states impose on Israel the responsibility for the failure of peace negotiations, which, as expected, were to be completed by a final solution of key issues.
"Israel has a choice: either it will freeze settlement construction and conduct peace talks with the Palestinians, or continue settlement activities," said Abu Ein.
According to Abu Ein, in case of a complete cessation of the peace talks, the political course of the Arab states and the Palestinian Authority will be aimed at creating an independent Palestinian state.
Previously, this has been repeatedly stated by the prime minister of Mahmoud Abbas administration, Salam Fayyad.
Possible failure of the peace talks disturbs the U.S. administration and the EU, which have repeatedly appealed to the Israeli leadership to freeze the construction of residential complexes in the occupied territories.
There are more than 100 Jewish settlements on the West Bank, which was occupied by Israel in 1967, in which more than 300,000 Jewish Israelis live. About other 200,000 live in East Jerusalem, which in terms of the international community, is also referred as to the occupied territories and the status of which must be defined in Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.