Ian Kelly
State Department Spokesman
Daily Press Briefing
Washington, DC
November 17, 2009
www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2009/nov/132024.htm
...
QUESTION: On the peace process, Israel has approved today the construction
of 900 new housing units in East Jerusalem. How do you view this approval at
this specific time?
MR. KELLY: Well, I think, Michel, you've heard us say many times that we
believe that neither party should engage in any kind of actions that could
unilaterally preempt or appear to preempt negotiations. And I think that we
find the Jerusalem Planning Committee's decision to move forward on the
approval of the - approval process for the expansion of Gilo in Jerusalem as
dismaying.
This is at a time when we're working to re-launch negotiations, and we
believe that these actions make it more difficult for our efforts to
succeed. So we object to this, and we object to other Israeli practices in
Jerusalem related to housing, including the continuing pattern of evictions
and demolitions of Palestinian homes.
And - just to repeat what we've said all along, our position on Jerusalem is
clear. We believe that the - that Jerusalem is a permanent status issue that
must be resolved through negotiations between the two parties.
QUESTION: Can you tell us, did this come up in Ambassador Mitchell's
meetings in London yesterday? Apparently, we were told that he met an
advisor to Netanyahu, asked them to not permit these new buildings, and then
that request was flatly turned down.
MR. KELLY: Yeah. Andy, I just don't want to get into the substance of these
negotiations. They're sensitive. I think you've seen the Israeli - some
Israeli press reports that did report that this was raised in the meetings.
This is - I mean, these kinds of unilateral actions are exactly the kind of
actions that we think that both sides should refrain from at a time when we're
trying to start the negotiations again. But I don't want to get into the
substance of the discussions yesterday in London.
QUESTION: Would you steer us away from not believing the Israeli press
reports?
MR. KELLY: I just don't want to get into the substance. I'm not going to
steer you one way or the other on it.
QUESTION: Where's Senator Mitchell today?
QUESTION: How long is the U.S. going to continue to tolerate Israel's
violation of international law? I mean, soon it's not even going to be
possible - there's not going to be any land left for the Palestinians to
establish an independent state.
MR. KELLY: Well, again, this is a - we understand the Israeli point of view
about Jerusalem. But we think that all sides right now, at this time when we're
expending such intense efforts to try and get the two sides to sit down,
that we should refrain from these actions, like this decision to move
forward on an approval process for more housing units in East Jerusalem.
QUESTION: But should U.S. inaction, or in response to Israel's actions, then
be interpreted as some sort of about-face in policy - the President turning
his back on the promises he's made to the Palestinians?
MR. KELLY: You're - okay, you're using language that I wouldn't use. I mean,
again, our focus is to get these negotiations started. We're calling on both
parties to refrain from actions, from - and from rhetoric that would impede
this process. It's a challenging time, and we just need to focus on what's
important here, and that's --
QUESTION: Well, what actions (inaudible) the Palestinians taken recently
that would impede progress?
MR. KELLY: Well, as I say, we would discourage all unilateral actions, and I
think --
QUESTION: Fair enough. But the Palestinians --
MR. KELLY: We talked yesterday --
QUESTION: -- don't appear to be taking any unilateral actions. It seems to
be (inaudible).
MR. KELLY: Well, we did talk yesterday about the - and I want to make sure I
get my language right here - about the - discouraging any kind of unilateral
appeal for United Nations Security Council recognition of a Palestinian
state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. That would fall in that category of
unilateral actions.
QUESTION: Okay. So the Palestinian call for this, which was rejected by both
the EU and yourself yesterday, you're putting that on the same level as them
building - as the Israelis building --
MR. KELLY: No, I'm not saying that. You just said that, Matt. I'm not saying
that. I'm just saying that --
QUESTION: Well, you're saying you're calling on both sides to stop doing
these things.
MR. KELLY: We are.
QUESTION: Yeah. But the rhetoric from the --
MR. KELLY: I'm not saying they're equivalent.
QUESTION: -- Palestinians is not actually constructed in a --
MR. KELLY: I'm not saying they're equivalent. I'm just saying that we -
they - we have to treat these things as sensitive issues.
QUESTION: You said a little bit earlier that we understand the Israeli point
of view on Jerusalem. Can you explain what you mean by that?
MR. KELLY: Well, you have to ask - I'm not going to stand up here and
characterize the Israeli point of view on --
QUESTION: No. I'm just asking you, if you understand the Israeli point of
view on Jerusalem, why are you saying that this is not a good thing?
MR. KELLY: I'm not saying we support the Israeli point of view. We
understand it.
QUESTION: Right. And then, last one on this, you characterized this decision
by the planning commission as dismaying.
MR. KELLY: Yes.
QUESTION: You can't come up with anything stronger than "dismaying"? I mean,
this flies in the face of everything you've been talking about for months
and months and months.
MR. KELLY: It's dismaying.
QUESTION: Yeah, you can't offer a condemnation of it or anything like that?
(Laughter.) I mean, who is in charge of the language here.
MR. KELLY: I have said what I have said, Mr. Lee.
Yeah.
QUESTION: Would you say, though, that your own envoy has - does he have any
leverage at this point, given the fact that the Israelis not only refuse,
but blatantly have ignored his wishes on this?
MR. KELLY: Well, let's take a step back and let's also recognize that both
sides agree on the goal, and that goal is a comprehensive peace. That goal
is two states living side by side in peace and security and cooperation. So
that is why we continue to be committed to this. That is why Special Envoy
Mitchell meets with both sides at every opportunity, and why we are
continuing to expend such efforts on this. So let's remember that, that we
do share a common goal.
QUESTION: Well, where's Senator Mitchell today?
MR. KELLY: I believe Senator Mitchell is on his way back today.
QUESTION: Could you give us just a brief synopsis of the progress that
Senator Mitchell has made in his months on the job?
MR. KELLY: Well, I think we have - we've gotten --
QUESTION: Yeah, maybe if the --
MR. KELLY: -- both sides to agree on this goal. We have gotten both sides --
QUESTION: Ian, they agreed on the goal years ago. I mean, that's not --
MR. KELLY: Well, I think that we - this government --
QUESTION: You mean you got the Israel Government to say, yes, we're willing
to accept a Palestinian state? You got Netanyahu to say that, and that's his
big accomplishment?
MR. KELLY: That is an accomplishment.
QUESTION: But previous Israeli administration - previous Israeli governments
had agreed to that already.
MR. KELLY: Okay, all right.
QUESTION: So in other words, the bottom line is that, in the list of
accomplishments that Mitchell has come up with or established since he
started, is zero.
MR. KELLY: I wouldn't say zero.
QUESTION: Well, then what would you say it is?
MR. KELLY: Well, I would say that we've gotten both sides to commit to this
goal. They have - we have - we've had a intensive round or rounds of
negotiations, the President brought the two leaders together in New York.
Look --
QUESTION: But wait, hold on. You haven't had any intense --
MR. KELLY: Obviously --
QUESTION: There haven't been any negotiations.
MR. KELLY: Obviously, we're not even in the red zone yet, okay.
QUESTION: Thank you.
MR. KELLY: I mean, we're not - but it's - we are less than a year into this
Administration, and I think we've accomplished more over the last year than
the previous administration did in eight years.
QUESTION: Well, I - really, because the previous administration actually had
them sitting down talking to each other. You guys can't even get that far.
MR. KELLY: All right.
QUESTION: I'll drop it.
MR. KELLY: Give us a chance. Thank you, Matt.
Yeah, in the back.
QUESTION: It seems Senator Mitchell is focusing in his meetings on the
Israeli side. Is he - does he have any plans to talk with the Palestinians,
or there is no need now for that?
MR. KELLY: Well, he, as I say, he had meetings yesterday with the Israelis.
He's coming back to the U.S. now. He always stands ready to talk to both
sides. There are no plans at this moment to meet with the Palestinian side.
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