Israel angered over Russia-Hamas talks

[RJnAbbysNana]

alJazeera.com

Israel angered over Russia-Hamas talks

2/10/2006 8:00:00 PM GMT


Israel slammed Russia for inviting Hamas leaders for talks, describing the initiative as a “knife in the back”, AFP reported.

On Thursday, the Russian President invited Hamas leaders to Moscow, saying that it was time for the world to accept the results of the Palestinian polls.

Top Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh welcomed Putin’s invitation, saying that the group is open to talks with all countries. "Our leadership will travel to Islamic and Arab countries and to the communist countries to talk about the internal situation among the Palestinian people," he said.

France also backed the initiative as potentially positive for the Middle East peace process. The offer "may contribute to advancing our positions," foreign ministry spokesman Denis Simonneau said.

cont..........

http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_ID=10592

It was encouraging to read that Putin wanted to meet with Hamas leaders, because this is not the time to ignore Hamas or prejudge its intentions.

I don't see how this is "a knife in the back" to Israel, simply because Putin has taken this initiative; and, furthermore, it's something which Bush should be thinking about, because the U.S. is going to have to have dialogue with Hamas, like it or not. IMHO, if Bush doesn't follow this example, he will probably regret it down the line.

Regards,

RJnAbbysNana

[RJnAbbysNana]

1. Putin's Hamas overture provokes storm of outrage from Israel

The Independent Online Edition

Putin's Hamas overture provokes storm of outrage from Israel

By Anne Penketh and Eric Silver in Jerusalem
Published: 11 February 2006


President Vladimir Putin's attempt to place Russia at the heart of the Middle East peace process by inviting Hamas leaders to Moscow for talks has provoked surprise in Europe and alarm in Israel.

Mr Putin broke ranks on Thursday with the other members of the international quartet - the US, EU and UN - by announcing the invitation to Hamas, officially designated as a terrorist organisation by the Americans. Mr Putin said that Russia had never considered Hamas to be terrorists. The Russian Defence Minister, Sergei Ivanov, predicted that "sometime in the future, many leading states will start maintaining some contacts with Hamas". Although Russia is a member of the quartet, which, last week in London, carefully co-ordinated its response to the shock Hamas victory in the Palestinian elections, the Kremlin has been marginalised in the Middle East peace process for more than a decade.

The quartet warned the suicide bombers of Hamas last week that all members of a future Palestinian government must be committed to "non-violence" and the recognition of Israel.

Diplomats said that the British Government had not been forewarned of the Russian overture to Hamas, although they stressed that it was too early to say whether the move marked a major shift in policy. France did not object, so long as agreed "objectives and principles" were observed.

cont..........

http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/article344730.ece

[bemildred]

2. Anger or panic?

Who couldn't see this coming? I doubt that Pooty-Poot, having taken this step, cares a fig what the Government of Israel thinks about it, he's making his move, he's telling the Bushites that they are not calling all the shots any longer in the Middle East.

[RJnAbbysNana]

3. I think it's great.

If nothing else, it shows Bush what diplomacy involves and that there has to be dialogue with Hamas.

Regards,

RJnAbbysNana

[bemildred]

4. Competition is good, or so I'm told.

I wouldn't trust Pooty-Poot anymore than Bush, but if he forces the Bushites to pretend to be more honest and make concessions, that could be a good thing, and Russia is even less capable than the USA of controlling the Middle East. And with any luck it will accelerate the permanent removal to all varieties of imperial troops from the area.

[Swede]

5. lsrael should open talks with the Chychyn rebels.

See if they need anything.

[bemildred]

6. Turkey follows Putin Hamas lead

Cracks are appearing in the diplomatic wall Israel is trying to build to isolate Hamas, as French and Turkish leaders made comments over the weekend reflecting Russian President Vladimir Putin's call for a dialogue with Hamas.

France indicated on Friday that it supported Putin's move, even though a Foreign Ministry spokesman said that France won't itself have contacts with Hamas.

Putin said Thursday that Russia was maintaining its contacts with Hamas and planned to invite the group's leadership to Russia in the near future.

A top Russian envoy said that a Hamas delegation could travel to Moscow by the end of the month, the Russian news agency Interfax reported Saturday.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1139395390353&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[bemildred]

7. EDITORIAL: Putin’s initiative with Hamas and Middle East peace is welcome

Just days ago, while on a visit to Spain, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said that he would invite Hamas (Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya) leaders to Moscow. “We must respect the choice of the Palestinian people,” Mr Putin said at a news conference in Madrid. “We haven’t considered Hamas a terrorist organisation. Today we must recognise that Hamas has reached power in Palestine as a result of legitimate elections.”

Mr Putin’s remarks are not only interesting, they are also very significant because, in the past, Mr Putin has condemned the violence perpetrated by Hamas suicide bombers. This is what a State Department spokesperson pointed to when he said that as a member of the Middle East Quartet — together with the US, EU and the UN — Russia has signed the statement that future dealings with Hamas would depend on the group renouncing violence and recognising Israel. “As a member of the Quartet, we would certainly expect that Russia would deliver that same message. They did so as a member of the Quartet in public to Hamas, and if there are any future meetings between Russian officials and Hamas officials, we would expect that they would deliver that same clear, strong message,” the spokesperson said.

Interestingly, however, while the US and EU — both treat Hamas as a terrorist organisation — have refused to deal with the group until it abjures violence and recognises Israel, they have not said anything about Mr Putin’s intention to invite Hamas leaders for talks. It seems that they would like Russia to get into the driver’s seat and try to change Hamas’ behaviour. For his part, Mr Putin’s decision to talk to Hamas is a smart move. Russia has traditionally had good relations with the Palestinians but Moscow, under Mr Putin, has taken a tough line on terrorism, a predictable course of action given Moscow’s own troubles with the restive Chechens. Mr Putin’s policy, therefore, seems geared towards three broad objectives: try to emerge as a dominant player within the Quartet (so far the US has played a leading role); show the Muslim world that Russia is not against the Muslims per se (by doing so he might hope to deprive the Chechens of the sympathies they derive from the Islamist movements in the broader Muslim world); and, push forward its influence with Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon (both Hamas and Hezbollah are considered Iranian proxies).

Daily Times