Jen Psaki
Spokesperson
Daily Press Briefing
Washington, DC
March 21, 2014
Index for Today's Briefing
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- Negotiation Process/Release of Prisoners
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QUESTION: Can we go to the Palestinian-Israeli peace process?
MS. PSAKI: Sure.
QUESTION: Okay. Israeli Justice Minister Tzipi Livni said that the key to the prison – meaning the release of the prisoners on the 29th – lies in Abbas’s hands, that he would have to give a commitment to continue in the negotiations, basically, post April 29th. Do you have a comment on that?
MS. PSAKI: Well, Said, as you know, this is an incredibly complicated issue, as is – as are many issues involved in the negotiations. We’re at a pivotal time, as we’ve said before, but I’m just not going to speak to every comment and analysis coming from both sides from the podium.
QUESTION: Now, the Palestinian negotiator insisted again that this was a separate deal struck with Secretary of State John Kerry on the 19th of July, even before the start of the current negotiations, that these prisoners would be released. Now, the last – the fourth tranche is the 29th of this month, not the 29th of next month.
MS. PSAKI: Again, we have seen three rounds of prisoners released. I’m not going to speak further to what was agreed to between parties. It’s a complicated issue. We’re obviously at an important time in the negotiations, but because of that I’m not going to speculate further.
QUESTION: Okay. There is a very thorough study done by a Palestinian think tank in the West Bank that says if the talks collapse and if the Palestinian Authority were to sort of dismantle and so on, that you will have chaos, violence, crime and so on, and the spread of, I mean, very, very bleak conditions. Do you do your own – do you conduct your own studies and analysis of what is likely to sort of be in the aftermath of a failed negotiations?
MS. PSAKI: Look, Said, our focus is on working towards an agreement between both parties. That’s where we put all of our efforts and energy.
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Document Type: Briefing, Press briefing, Transcript
Country: Israel, United States of America
Subject: Peace process, Peace proposals and efforts, Prisoners and detainees
Publication Date: 21/03/2014