Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told the UN General Assembly on Thursday that US-brokered peace talks could be a “last chance” at an agreement with Israel to resolve all disputes.
Abbas warned, “Time is running out, and the window of peace is narrowing and the opportunities are diminishing.”
“The current round of negotiations appears to be a last chance to realise a just peace,” he added.
Abbas said the peace process with Israel — relaunched by US Secretary of State John Kerry — needed to produce a “permanent” peace.
“We refuse to enter into a vortex of a new interim agreement that becomes eternalised,” Abbas stressed.
The President also encouraged international action against Israeli settlements, adding that occupation cannot “provide legitimacy” and that while such policies may “impose a weak stability… they cannot prevent an inevitable explosion”.
“Our objective is to achieve a permanent and comprehensive agreement and a peace treaty between the states of Palestine and Israel that resolves all outstanding issues and answers all questions,” he said.
At an earlier meeting on the Middle East, US Secretary of State Kerry also called for a permanent settlement, saying “All of the issues are on the table – territories, security, refugees, Jerusalem. All of the final status issues are on the table.”
