Palestinian interim technocratic gov’t./US assistance to the PA – USDoS press briefing/Non-UN document (excerpts)

Marie Harf

Deputy Spokesperson
Daily Press Briefing

Washington, DC

June 4, 2014

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PALESTINIANS

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TRANSCRIPT:

12:57 p.m. EDT

QUESTION: Very quickly on the Palestinian government?

MS. HARF: Yeah.

QUESTION: Today, the Secretary of State reiterated that we will be watching it very closely —

MS. HARF: Yeah.

QUESTION: — and see how it conducts itself and so on. Also, the Palestinian elections commission – committee said that they are ready to conduct the election within 90 days. So is that something that the United States Government is pushing to have? I know you said that you want the government to be transitional and so on —

MS. HARF: Yeah.

QUESTION: — and arrange for elections, but you would like them to – you would like to see it as soon as possible, right?

MS. HARF: Well, I mean, we’d – I don’t have a timeframe for you on what we’d like.

QUESTION: Right.

MS. HARF: I did say, and it is true, that one of the main responsibilities of the interim government is to set up the next election. So to the extent that that process is moving, it’ll keep moving, and the Secretary was very clear today about our position.

QUESTION: Would you have any concern that Hamas might win this election, as they did in 2006?

MS. HARF: I don’t have any internal Palestinian polling about this election.

QUESTION: Okay.

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http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2014/06/227099.htm#PALESTINIANS