FM Liberman meets with UN SG and World Bank President
MFA 1 Feb 2012

FM Liberman told Ban Ki-Moon that Israel appreciates the stand he took and
the unequivocal message he expressed against the unilateral measures taken
by the Palestinians at the UN.

FM Liberman meets with UN Sec-Gen Ban Ki-Moon in Jerusalem (Photo:
Reuters)
(Communicated by the Foreign Minister’s Bureau)

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Avigdor Liberman met
on Wednesday morning (1 February) in Jerusalem with UN Secretary General Ban
Ki-Moon and with the President of the World Bank, Robert Zoellick. Subjects
were discussed relating to political and economic issues on a regional as
well as a global level.

FM Liberman told Sec-Gen Ban Ki-Moon that Israel appreciates the stand he
took and the unequivocal message he expressed against the unilateral
measures taken by the Palestinians at the UN. Liberman said that these
measures do not promote the diplomatic process, and the impression is that
the Palestinians are only interested in announcing the failure of the talks
in Amman in order to continue the unilateral moves.

At the meeting, FM Liberman warned that if Iran takes control of Iraq,
creating a continuum of states under Iranian influence -
Iraq-Syria-Lebanon - Israel and Jordan will be faced with a great challenge.
This reality would endanger regional stability and harm world security.

In his meeting with World Bank President Zoellick, FM Liberman said that
only economic development and the creation of a strong middle class in the
Palestinian Authority, together with stability and a calm security
environment will be able to bring about a true peace in which Israel and the
Palestinians can live side by side. That is the direction on which to focus
and not on artificial attempts to bring about agreements that are not based
on the reality on the ground and will in the end make the situation worse.