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Why Israel rejected Paris peace conference

Israel had hoped that the Paris conference initiative will fade away, the way the French initiative for a UN resolution on Palestinian statehood was sidelined.
(L to R) French Foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, French President Francois Hollande and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon pose prior to an international and interministerial conference in a bid to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, in Paris, France, June 3, 2016.   REUTERS/Stephane de Sakutin/Pool - RTX2FHFG
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PARIS  — ''We feared that we might receive just lip service approval; that our partners would agree, but not really engage. But at the end of the day, the partners present here and also several others have shown enthusiasm and commitment to this initiative,'' a French diplomat told Al-Monitor today, while waiting for the final June 3 Paris conference communique to be published.

Indeed, “enthusiasm” was the word repeatedly mentioned today in the corridors of the French Foreign Affairs Ministry. After deliberating for many weeks over a 50-something page draft, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault presented a short, clear and concise communique sketching the framework (UN Resolutions 242 and 338, and the Arab Peace Initiative) and the timetable (an international conference for the two-state solution by the end of the year) agreed upon by the 29 participants.

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