(INN).Palestinian Authority leaders believe that American pressure on Israel means they can get away with taking negotiations lightly, Speaker of the Knesset, MK Reuven Rivlin said Thursday. However, he said, in reality the PA is going to be forced to make difficult decisions.
Rivlin explained his thinking in a Thursday meeting with Andrew Standley, the European Union's representative in Israel.
"The Palestinians think that the pressure on Israel from America makes it easier for them, and frees them from conducting real peace talks – but this is a mistake,” he said. The PA “will need to grab the bull by the horns and discuss the most significant, burning issues, such as the 'right of return,' the definition of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, and Jerusalem.”
“Core issues” such as the status of Jerusalem must be part of negotiations from the beginning, Rivlin said. Pushing those subjects off to the end of the peace process makes the peace process meaningless, he added.
Most Israelis are ready to compromise with the PA, “as long as they know it's for the sake of a lasting peace,” Rivlin concluded