French President Francois Hollande, who is on a 3-day visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories, stressed the urgency of a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians, saying that ‘’gestures are necessary on both sides.’’
He said during a joint press conference Sunday in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu:"In order that there will be no more mutual claims between the parties, genuine gestures are necessary from both sides.’’
‘’Some gestures have already been started by Israel -- the freeing of prisoners,” he said, adding that ‘’gestures are also wanted regarding the colonization,’’ a term used to characterize the settlements.
When asked by an AFP journalist at the press conference if he would use the term ''illegitimate'' for the Israeli settlements in the West Bank, like US Secretary of State named them last week, Hollande responded: ‘’I have my own words. Colonization cannot facilitate a peace agreement but will rather make it more complicate.’’
He said he intends to talk with the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, whom he was due to met in Ramallah Monday morning, about the necessary gestures from the Palestinian side.
‘’I know that if the decisions are reciprocal and trust is shared, then you and the Palestinians will get the most beautiful victory - a victory of peace,’’ Hollande added.
Monday afternoon, the French president will address a special session of the Knesset plenum, Israel’s parliament, to be followed by a state dinner at President Peres' Jerusalem residence attended by senior members of the French and Israeli governments, Prime Minister Netanyahu and 140 honored guests ‘’representing the strength and depth of French-Israeli relations.’’
On Tuesday morning, President Hollande will lay a stone on the graves of the victims of the March 2012 terrorist attack on the Ozar Hatorah Jewish school in Toulouse. From there, he will tour an exhibition on Israeli technological innovation.
During the 3-day visit, Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Hollande will sign a joint statement that expresses the continued growth of bilateral relations, the determination to continue and deepen cooperation in many areas of strategic importance, and the strengthening of economic, scientific, educational and cultural ties between the two countries.
On Sunday, Netanyahu insisted that ‘’the French President is a close friend of the State of Israel.’’ ‘’Together we will work to advance and deepen bilateral strategic and economic relations.’’