Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians will begin “in the very near future,” with a summit in either Washington or Cairo or "any other venue".
Speaking to journalists on Monday in Athens after a meeting with Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou, Netanyahu said patience was needed in restarting direct negotiations with the Palestinians. But launching the talks would not take years or even months, he added.
The Israeli Prime Minister showed no sign, however, of backing down from his insistence that there be no preconditions, such as a timeline or agenda, before direct talks can begin — a demand of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
"For the past year and a half I've been trying to have direct meetings without a predetermined agenda with the Palestinian Authority," Netanyahu said during the joint press conference with Papandreou at Maximou Mansion, the Greek Prime Minister’s official residence, in the Greek capital.
"We have to have patience," he said in Hebrew, with the comments translated into Greek. "Of course we won't need to wait for many months or many years. I believe that with some patience you will see results."
Asked whether Cairo or Washington would be a good venue, Netanyahu indicated the talks could be held anywhere.
"We can go to Cairo, we can go to Washington, we can go to any place we can in order to give flesh and bones to this initiative," he said. "I hope everything will have a positive development."
The two leaders discussed for an hour and a half the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Iran, and military and economic cooperation.
Netanyahu is the first ever Israeli Prime Minister who has paid an official visit to Greece since the creation of the Israeli state. Greece only recognized Israel's statehood in the early 1990s.
Agreement to boost bilateral strategic cooperation
Papandreou visited Israel in July in a sign of strengthening bilateral ties.
The two countries agreed to boost bilateral strategic cooperation, focusing on security and economy.
"We can boost bilateral relations in many sectors, such as business partnerships, investments, tourism, new technologies, renewable energy sources and security," Papandreou said.
The two leaders announced that they agreed to create a joint committee to examine the possible future initiatives of cooperation in the above fields. Israeli investors will visit Greece and Greek entrepreneurs will visit Israel to seek ways to enhance economic cooperation.
"We believe that this visit will be a first step to further boost bilateral and regional relations. We seek a peaceful Middle East through the re-launching of direct peace talks with the Palestinian Authority with an agenda without preconditions," Netanyahu said.
"We live in one neighborhood. We support efforts to reach a viable solution for Israel and the Palestinians. It is in our vital interest," Papandreou said.

Israel-Turkey relations in the shadow

Netanyahu’s Greece visit comes as relations between Israel and Turkey, Greece's traditional rival, have soured since an Israeli commando raid in May on a flotilla of international pro-palestinian activists seeking to break the naval blockade of Gaza. Nine Turkish activists were killed in the raid.
Replying a question whether the improving of relations with Israel could damage the country's ties with Turkey, Papandreou said that the strengthening of ties between Greece and Israel should not be regarded in conflict with Greece's bilateral or multilateral relations with other countries.
Both Israel and Greece have distanced themselves from speculations that they are forming an alliance against Turkey. An official travelling with Netanyahu quoted the leader as saying that both Israel and Greece wanted to improve ties with Turkey, and that, "certainly this visit doesn't harm that goal. It can only help."
Greece's tourism sector has already profited from Israel's fallout with Turkey, as Israeli tourists, who once flocked to Turkish resorts now prefer Greek destinations.
Around 300 demonstrators took part in two separate anti-Israeli protests organized by Greek Left groups on Monday afternoon in front of the Israeli embassy in central Athens. They displayed banners reading "Zionist murderer get out," and "Sever all ties with Israel."
On Tuesday Netanyahu is to hold talks with Greek Defense Minister Evangelos Venizelos aboard an Israeli ship that was purchased by Greece and later with Greek opposition leader Atonis Samaras.
After landing in Athens on Monday, the Israeli Prime Minister visited a museum dedicated to Greece's Jewish community, largely exterminated during the Holocaust.