Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman has left German parliamentarians pessimistic about the future of the Middle East peace process. Concluding his four day European visit in Berlin on Thursday, the right-wing minister refused to commit to a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinian territories, Italian news agency AKI reported
During talks with members of the German parliamentary foreign affairs committee on Thursday Lieberman also said the peace process had been little more than a waste of money.
Later in the day, Lieberman paid his respects at Berlin's Holocaust memorial, laying a wreath at the 19,000-square-metre monument in the centre of the city.
Lieberman ended his first diplomatic trip to Europe with a meeting with his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin.
In his meeting with Steinmeier, Lieberman is reported to have urged Berlin to back stronger ties between the European Union and Israel and without any conditions on the progress of peace talks with the Palestinians.
According to Deutsche Welle, Germany's top diplomat urged the controversial Israeli foreign minister to adopt a two-state plan as the basis for peace in the Middle East and the "sole path to peace and security."
Steinmeier called on Lieberman to abide by previous agreements with the Palestinians and to back a two-state solution.
"It's important to strengthen moderate forces in the region and actively engage in peace efforts," Steinmeier said in a statement after the meeting.
The pair discussed the new government's foreign policy review, which Lieberman said would be completed before prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu meets US President Barack Obama later this month, Steinmeier said.
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