Netanyahu: Paris Conference Is a Useless Conference

As more than 70 world diplomats gathered in Paris on Sunday to push for renewed peace talks, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu blasted the conference.

At the start of the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday, Netanyahu said, “The conference convening in Paris today is a useless conference. It is being coordinated between the French and the Palestinians. Its goal is to try and force terms on Israel that conflict with our national needs. Of course, it pushes peace further away because it strengthens the Palestinian positions and it also pushes them away from direct negotiations without preconditions. I must say that this conference is among the last twitches of yesterday’s world.”

Hinting to the Trump presidency, Netanyahu said, “Tomorrow’s world will be different – and it is very near.”

Netanyahu last week snubbed the conference as “rigged” against Israel, and Trump’s incoming administration isn’t taking part.

The gathering is an “empty summit” that was cooked up behind Israel’s back and is designed to force conditions on the country that are against its national interests, Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu declined an invitation to a special meeting after the conference, and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas was initially expected, but his visit to Paris was postponed.