Israel's new Foreign Minister slams peace deal

Well that was fast.

There was a lot of concern when Avigdor Lieberman was tapped to be Israel’s new Foreign Minister that it would mean bad things for the Israel-Palestine Peace Process. Just one day into the job Lieberman, who has been described as an “ultra-nationalist” by some and an outright racist by others, rejected the Annapolis agreement forged by President George W. Bush back in 2007.

The Annapolis agreement committed the Israelis and Palestinians to “vigorous, ongoing and continuous” negotiations on a two-state solution that would create an independent Palestinian homeland in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Bush had hoped by the end of his term in 2008. Lieberman, though, said that the Annapolis agreement “has no validity,” a declaration that seemed to even catch members of the Foreign Ministry that he now heads, off guard. Lieberman said the only obligation Israel has is to the 2003 “Road Map” agreement for a two-state solution - an agreement Lieberman himself voted against while a member of Israel’s Parliament, the Knesset. Of course Israel has continuously failed to live up to one of the key elements of the Road Map, a freeze on building “settlements” for Israeli citizens within the occupied Palestinian lands.

Lieberman has a long history of making very controversial statements about Arabs in general and Palestinians in particular. Even while campaigning ahead of Israel’s elections just this past February, Lieberman suggested that Israeli citizens of Arab descent (who make up about a quarter of Israel’s population) should have to swear ‘loyalty oaths’ to Israel or lose their citizenship.

For his part, new Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Israel will “strive for peace” and said that they (the Israelis) did not want to rule over another people (the Palestinians). Yet Netanyahu has also backed away from supporting an independent Palestinian state, which would seem to contradict his ‘not wanting to rule’ statement. Netanyahu is also stressing the need to 'deal with' the threat he sees from Iran.