Abbas wants US guarantees on future border control

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2010-07-22

Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, has said direct talks with the Israeli’s will not go ahead unless the US can guarantee the borders of a future Palestinian state.

Mr Abbas, meeting with his Fatah leaders, said that he did not have confidence in US President Barack Obama's assurances, as they remained unclear.

At a closed door meeting which was later reported unofficially, he said messages he had received from the US president had not been able to define the borders of the occupied territories.

Abbas said he wanted guarantees that territories that were captured in the 1967 Six Day War would be established.

In comments that were published on Wednesday in a Palestinian daily, Abbas said Obama's assurances concerning border negotiations had only been delivered last week by US Middle East envoy George Mitchell.

While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he wants to move to direct talks, the Palestinians are showing reluctance due to Israeli reversals in previous promises.

Source: Europe News.Net