Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert Monday said he is optimistic that a peace agreement with the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) would be reached by the end of 2008, local daily Yedioth Ahronoth reported.
"An agreement with the Palestinians could be reached by the end of the year," the report quoted Olmert as saying before his leaving on an official visit to Russia. "But this largely depends on the Palestinians' willingness," he added.
The outgoing prime minister said that he was optimistic that the peace talks would yield results by the end of 2008, although no significant progress has so far been announced since the ambitious goal set at a U.S.- hosted conference in Annapolis last November.
As little tangible progress has been made since the Annapolis conference, expectations are lowering for the two sides to clinch a comprehensive peace deal within 2008 as they pledged, and calls are mounting for the two neighbors to speed up the negotiations.
Meanwhile, Olmert also clarified that the views he expressed in a Rosh Hashana (the Jewish New Year's Day) interview with Yedioth Ahronoth, that Israel should quit most of the occupied land, are his private opinions and do not compel his future replacement, Foreign Minister and new Kadima Chairwoman Tzipi Livni.
"This does not compel Livni. I stand behind what I said and I am the only person responsible for these statements, but none of them compel Livni," said the prime minister.
As for his visit to Moscow, Olmert said he would discuss security-related issues with top Russian leaders, including Russia's sale of antiaircraft missiles to Iran.
Source: Xinhua
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