ABBAS WANTS DIRECT TALKS

Abbasa calls for a quick soloution to talks, I can bet spain will be involved in this "quick" emergency talks. we will see in the next few days.

Abbas calls for direct negotiations on Mideast conflict 2 hours, 1 minute ago

OSLO (AFP) - Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas called for direct negotiations to be held "immediately" between Israelis and Palestinians at a proposed international conference on working a way out of the Middle East conflict. An international conference should be summoned immediately, in which direct negotiations take place (between the Israelis and Palestinians),
on the basis of international UN resolutions and signed agreements," Abbas said in a speech at the Nobel Institute in Oslo. The international group, whether it is the Quartet (the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations), or any other international framework, would play the role of the broker and arbitrator at the same time," he added. I believe that to resolve the conflict, both sides should not be left alone with this imbalance of occupier and occupied," Abbas said. The Palestinian leader, currently on a tour of Europe, encouraged the international community to "move fast" to secure a negotiated settlement to the conflict and stop a unilateral solution being imposed by acting Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert.The international community needs to move fast.

Israel's unilateral measures through which it strives to impose its vision and expansionist map by building the discrimination separation wall, Judaising Jerusalem, would lead to a practical
annexation of more than 58 percent of the West Bank to Israel," the Palestinian leader said.
He was referring to Olmert's plan to dismantle smaller settlements in the West Bank and annex larger ones. Abbas said Israel's unilateral measures risk "eliminating any chance to establish a viable independent Palestinian state. He cited Israeli moves to put "their hands on Palestinian artesian water resources, transforming our lands into isolated cantons. The Palestinian leader said he had a free hand to negotiate with the Israelis despite the victory of radical Islamist group Hamas in recent Palestinian elections. It is important for me to clarify that the Palestinian legislative election, which brought Hamas to power, is not an obstacle in front of negotiations.

Negotiations are still the mandate of the PLO, which signed all previous agreements with Israel," he added. Abbas also called on the international community to resume financial aid to the Palestinians which has been suspended since Hamas formed its government last month. We call upon the international community in general, and upon Europe too, at the individual level of each state and collectively in the frame of the European Union, to continue to provide various forms of moral and financial support, to enable us to achieve our goals in reaching peace in the area, and making it a success," the leader said. Norway responded by saying it would give 20 million dollars in aid and would explore means of offering direct assistance to the office of the Palestinian Authority president.

Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said his country was "reviewing a number of projects for Norwegian funding worth approximately 20 million dollars within the health and education sectors as well as for energy supplies. Unlike the United States and the European Union, Norway has not formally suspended its aid since no aid was due to be sent after Hamas'
election. It has however insisted that any future direct "budgetary aid" be conditional on moves by the Hamas government to recognize Israel and renounce its armed struggle. Norway reiterated that its aid to the Palestinian territories would be at least as high this year as it was last year. In 2005, Norway gave 500 million Norwegian kroner (79 million dollars, 64 million euros) in aid.