Kahlon Assures Zionist Camp Peace Talk Not Just Talk

YERUSHALAYIM
Israeli Finance Minister and Kulanu Party leader Moshe Kahlon. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)
Israeli Finance Minister and Kulanu Party leader Moshe Kahlon. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s coalition reached out again to the Zionist Camp party to join the government on Thursday, as Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon gave public assurance that talk about a peace move is genuine.

“The rumors and talk of a significant diplomatic move in our region are much more than just newspaper tittle tattle. There exists the possibility of a substantial change of direction in our region. I call on the Zionist Camp to join the government and not miss the historic window of opportunity that has been created. You can’t engage in a diplomatic process or generate change from the opposition,” Globes quoted him as saying at an appearance in Netanya, where he received a certificate of honorary citizenship of the city.

“This is not the time or place to go into detail, but we have a rare possibility of a significant change of direction at a regional level,” Kahlon said. “The convening of a regional conference at which all stakeholders in the region are represented is an important, desirable and worthy idea. I and the Kulanu party will support and strive to promote it with all our might. Such a move will be a spur to further broadening of the coalition, and I do not think that the Zionist Camp can refrain from taking part in this challenge.”

The remarks follow statements by Netanyahu and newly-appointed Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman indicating a willingness to consider the 13-year-old Saudi peace plan, and welcoming Egypt’s offer to help revive the peace process.

Kahlon further said that he was in close touch with ministers in the Palestinian Authority, and that he was making efforts to strengthen the Palestinian economy. “We shall continue to strengthen relations between us and the Palestinians, and base them on a healthy economy. Past experience shows that seeds sown on the economic plane bear fruit on the diplomatic and security planes.”

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