Photo by GPO

PM Olmert:  Thank you very much Danny for your somewhat unusual introduction, which reminds me of many events that I took part in over the last two years in my Office, not talking necessarily about the press.

First I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate you.  I understand that you are celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Foreign Press Club in the State of Israel, which is in itself a remarkable anniversary.  I think that when you started 50 years ago, there were quite a few of you representing the foreign press in the State of Israel, and one can say safely, I think without exaggerations, that over the last 50 years perhaps per capita, per population, there were more reports coming from this place than from any other corner of the world.  So while Israel is not that big, I think it’s been a source of much news and many reports, and many stories that came across and that were reported by you for so many years.  I don’t want to say that we always were particularly happy with some of these stories, but we always respected your right to report them and the interest that you showed in the State of Israel.  I thought to myself while I was driving here from the Prime Minister’s Office, which is not that far, what shall I wish for you for the next 50 years.  And considering everything I thought that the best is to wish you 50 boring years in the State of Israel – I think it will be very good for us at least.

We are also celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the State of Israel this year.  And I think that this is really a very significant anniversary from every point of view.  I am proud that I am the Prime Minister of a country which through these 60 years of trials and tribulations, of pains and of joys, of many difficult challenges that we had to face, not even for one second did we lose the democratic nature of our country.  I don’t know if I have to say that I am proud to say that we are the only democracy in this part of the world; but we are a democracy under the most unbelievable conditions and this one thing about the State of Israel – not only that has never been weakened over the last 60 years, but gradually and consistently has always been strengthened and we are very proud of it.  We are very proud that we can set an example for many countries in the world, how in spite of the threats and the difficulties and the dangers, and the instabilities which are built in in this part of the world, we have never lost faith in the right of every person for complete equality and complete freedom in our country.  This is a great achievement. I don’t know to say what is the greatest achievement of the State of Israel in the last 60 years, but this is a great achievement.

And another achievement which we are so proud to celebrate this year, when we celebrate our 60th Anniversary, is the fact that 60 years ago we were 650,000 living here.  Today we are over 7 million.  And we have absorbed people that came from almost every corner of the world.  We have perhaps the most diverse society there is for a small country as we are.  We have people that came from every continent, from almost every existing country, we have people of all colors, of all faiths, of all backgrounds, and they are all part of the State of Israel.  And we are very proud to have all of them as part of the State of Israel.

And in the course of these years, needless to say, you have reported about so many of the historic events which took place in this country.  Some of them were very painful; some of them were very joyful; all of them were very important.

And in the course of these years we also built a society with great achievements, we have built an economy which is a very successful economy, which created and provided opportunities for many people; which has increased and upgraded the quality of life for the people living here in almost an unprecedented way in comparison to most countries in the world.  We have developed science and technologies, and culture, and institutions including research and scientific institutions and academic institutions which are amongst the best in the whole world.

There are many languages which are spoken by the people who live in this country, perhaps more languages than in any other place in the world.  But we are very proud that we made the Hebrew language a lively, colorful, powerful language for all the people that live in the State of Israel.  The revival of the Hebrew language in the previous century, I think, is amongst the greatest achievements of a new culture of the country that was created here 60 years ago.

And in the course of these years we achieved making peace with some of our neighbors.  I know that to talk about the peace achievements in the context of the present circumstances sounds sometimes strange because there is so much that we are still missing that we want to achieve.  But the fact is that we made peace with Egypt and we made peace with Jordan, and we have established all kinds of contacts in this part of the world which are very significant and which are very promising.  While we still fight with Palestinians who are perpetrating terrorist actions against us, we talk with Palestinians in a way that we never did in the past, and we are absolutely determined to carry on these talks until we can finalize an agreement that will bring peace, to them and to us, and will help us both realize that solution which I think is the only solution for them and for us – the two state solution: a Palestinian state for the Palestinian people, the State of Israel for the Jewish people, two neighbors that leave alongside each other in peace, security, and mutual respect.

This is the main objective that we hope to be able to achieve soon.  It is difficult; it is complex; it is very sensitive; it is sometimes very explosive.  I am fully aware of all the possible obstacle and hurdles that we have to cross before we can make genuine and serious and stable peace with the Palestinians.  But we are on the way.  And I believe that together with our partners to the peace process, we will overcome those who are fighting against it, who are using sometimes the worst possible means in order to stop it.  We will not let them win.  Those who wish peace, those who wish good neighborly relations will prevail.

And again I want to thank you, for taking part – although from the outside, although from some distance, but taking part – in looking at the history in making, giving it a perspective that is very important, and exposing it to so many people across the world who are genuinely interested in the events that take place in our country.  I hope that at least this year, if you here will not be boring, it will be happier than all the 59 years before we have reached the 60th Anniversary of the State of Israel.

Question:  Prime Minister, Katya Adler from the BBC.  You were saying just now that Israel is determined to keep talking until there is peace.  Your critics say that the talks will continue and continue to be empty until all sides take some action.  Israel, for example could stop building in or around, on existing settlement blocks.  Israel could talk to Hamas, which is a Palestinian reality on the ground, or is Israel already talking to Hamas?  Thank you Prime Minister. 
It would be great to hear your response to those criticisms, what the real point behind these talks are, why settlement growth continues, and whether you’re speaking to Hamas.

PM Olmert:   We are not speaking to Hamas, and we are not going to speak to Hamas, we are going to fight with Hamas, because Hamas is continuing their terrorist attacks against innocent Israelis in various parts of the country and there can be no compromise on this.  Today there were five or six Kassam rockets shot at Israelis – nine already – by the time that I left the Office and came here.  Nine rockets that were shot at innocent Israelis in the south part of the country.  This is not a prescription for peaceful relations and we are not going to compromise with it, and I have said it time and again, we will have to respond to it in a manner that will hopefully make them understand that this is not the way to deal with us.  So this is quite clear. 

Now, I’m quite happy actually, that you are not familiar with all the facts regarding the talks between us and the Palestinians.  It would have made me very concerned had the details been spread on a daily basis to the media.  Sometimes I’m happy that you don’t know everything.  I can only tell you this.  These are not empty talks – we are very serious.  We say time and again before Annapolis started, when the President invited us to Annapolis – both us and the Palestinians and all the other participants – we said, we do not believe that we can reach a comprehensive permanent agreement that will be implemented this year.  What we are trying to achieve this year is to reach a very accurate outline and definition of all the basic parameters of the two-state solution.  If we will reach this this year, and we seriously try to do it, then this will be an historic breakthrough that will lay the foundations for the permanent peace between us and the Palestinians.  And we are doing it now.  In as long as we haven’t achieved an agreement, naturally, you know, one could say what you said, and I’m not certain that we will be able to do it, but we try very seriously, and I’m happy that not all the details are well-known to everyone.  They shouldn’t.  If they would be spread, it could be very difficult to carry on these negotiations.  The fact that you don’t know proves to me that we are going on the right way.

Adler: I’m sorry, and the settlements?

PM Olmert:  And the settlements – the settlements, I’ve said time and again, the settlement issue will be the outcome of negotiations.  It’s quite obvious, and we kept saying it many times.  The negotiations will define in an accurate way, the borders and all the other aspects that will determine the fate of all these issues. Therefore, I know that sometimes when one building is built here or another building is built there, everyone who wants to blow this out of its realistic proportion can do it, but this is really I think much less significant than sometimes the headlines suggest. 

Question:  Hassam Hatif from NBCTV.

Hatif:  This weekend, the Summit of the Arab League will take place in Damascus, and there they will discuss all sorts of matters relating to the Arab initiative.  Some members would like to rescind it, and others who are very disappointed, especially the Saudis who initiated it.  As far as you are concerned, is the Arab initiative still relevant?  Or do you feel its time has passed?

PM Olmert:  First of all I suggest that we will patiently and see what happens in the Arab Summit.  You mentioned the Saudis for instance. Let’s wait and see if they participate, who comes on behalf of the Saudis to participate in this meeting, and how important this meeting is going to be, not by our standards, by the standards for the Arab countries themselves.  I think it’s too early to judge.  In any event, as far as Israel is concerned, I think, I made it clear and I said it explicitly, publicly, and officially many times and I’m ready to say it again – that we consider the Arab peace initiative as very relevant to the talks between us and the Palestinians.  It was relevant, it is relevant and I have a lot of respect for the original initiative of the Saudis to promote peace, Arab peace initiative.  And it hasn’t changed in this respect. 

Reporter:  what about the part in it about Syria?

PM Olmert:  I much prefer to speak about the whole thing and you know, I don’t see any particular reason now to separate the different parts of the Arab Peace Initiative.  The Arab Peace Initiative is relevant. 

Question:  My name is Silke Mertins from Financial Times, Germany.  I would like to ask you two questions.  One is:  Hamas and Fatah are resuming it seems, reconciliation talks.  When is the point when you will blow off the talks with Abbas because of that?  And the second question is also on the settlements, I really don’t understand.  As far as I remember you promised Bush that you will do something with the outposts and according to the Roadmap, there shouldn’t be any enlargement of the settlements.  So, how can you look into the eyes of Bush when he comes in May and nothing has been done?

PM Olmert:  Number one, I heard that President Mahmoud Abbas officially and publicly denied that there is any agreement that the PLO is a party to with Hamas and that his conditions for any agreement with Hamas remains what they were, namely the restoration of the original situation in Gaza to what it was, the full recognition of the agreements signed between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and the acceptance of all the principles of the Quartet.  And to the best of my knowledge these conditions, according to the announcement made officially by the Palestinian Authority, were not changed.  And therefore I hope that they will not change.  If they will change, then of course we will have to look into it and to make our decisions. 

As for the settlements, since you insist on going into this issue, let me clarify that from day one, and I repeat from day one, President Bush, Secretary Rice, President Abbas all knew that a) Israel will not build any new settlement and we don’t build any new settlement, b) that we will not expropriate any more land for settlements and we don’t expropriate any more land for settlements and c) which is equally important – they knew from the outside that in the population centers and in Jerusalem, the reality on the ground will not be the same in the future as it is today.    There will be more additional building as part of the reality of life, and this is something that was well explained to everyone involved.  And therefore I can look into the eyes of everyone and say that I haven’t changed anything that Israel was committed to.  Now it is true that both the Palestinians and Israel have to accomplish their obligations within the framework of the Roadmap and that any implementation of the future agreement between us is subject to the full implementation of the Roadmap.  I am fully aware of that, and we are going to comply with all of our commitments in the Roadmap as the Palestinians will have to do. 

Mertins:  Including the outposts?

PM Olmert:  Including the outposts. 

Question:  Prime Minister, Don Macintyre from the Independent of London.  In view of what you said, not least today, about the importance of the negotiating process with Mahmoud Abbas, why don’t you invite or indeed urge Meretz, under a new leader, to join your coalition when they seem very well up for painful concessions rather than relying or perhaps as well as relying so doggedly on Shas which doesn’t seem to want to make any concessions at all?

PM Olmert:  You know, Meretz was involved up until now, was engaged for a long time in an internal process of electing a new leader.  They just completed it, and being familiar with Meretz, I know that they will be loyal to the principles whether they are part of the Cabinet or whether they are outside of the coalition.  So I don’t see any reason for you to be worried.  Meretz is very genuine as far as the peace process is concerned and even when they are outside of the coalition they support the process. 

Macintyre: Shas, Prime Minister doesn’t…

PM Olmert:  Shas is part of the coalition. The coalition is negotiating. 

Question:  Good evening, Mr. Prime Minister.  My name is Ahmad Badeed.  I’m from BBC Arabic and also from the FBA, and thank you for your comments about the fifty years and we wish to see you next year as our guest also.

PM Olmert:  I promise I will come.  I hope you will all be here.

Badeed:  They say that the weather in Moscow is now very nice.  Do you expect that you are going to go to Moscow sir?

PM Olmert:   I think, quite frankly, as I said to Secretary Lavrov, that what we need in order to make peace in the Middle East is to seat the two sides together and talk, rather than to go out to international conventions.  I mean, this habit of going from one convention to the other is not something that I am particularly in favor of.

Question:  Mr. Prime Minister, Rombo Selayki, I’ve got two questions: first of all, I’d like to hear your reaction to something that was today said by the father of Gilad Shalit, Noam…

PM Olmert:  Yes.

Selayki:  Where he basically asked why aren’t you doing enough or he said, you’re not doing enough to bring about the release of his son.  He said something along the lines of, “Why should my son be the only sucker – ‘frier’”?  I’d like your reaction to that.  Second question is regarding Iran: in the wake of the American intelligence report, has there been a shift in the walk towards sanctions on the one hand and does that bring or push a military solution even further away?

PM Olmert:  Well, first of all, Noam Shalit, the father of the abducted Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, talks from his heart and I have enormous respect for him, for his family.  I can understand where his emotions are coming from, naturally.  And I don’t think it will be appropriate that we will engage in a public debate.  The Government is doing its utmost to create the necessary circumstances that will allow Gilad Shalit to return back home.   This is a sensitive matter and I don’t think that it can be discussed in detail publicly.   I think that it is counterproductive to the efforts that we are making.  The last person in the world that I can be mad at for expressing his emotions about it is the father or the mother or all the family members of Gilad Shalit who are waiting for this young soldier for so many days and restless nights.  And I hope with them and I’m making my utmost in order to make sure that he will return as soon as possible. 

Now, for the other question about Iran: we never changed our mind, based on the information that we have, that Iran is engaged in an effort to create a non-conventional capacity and part of it is also the military plan.  We think that the free world must join forces together in order to stop the Iranians.  It must be led by the biggest nations of the world – the United States of America, Russia, China, Great Britain, Germany, France and others.  And there are already three resolutions that were adopted by the United Nations Security Council that proposed a variety of different sanctions that will be imposed on Iran as part of this international effort to convince them to stop the enrichment program and the military plan to build up this non-conventional capacity.  I hope that these measures will be helpful.  I’m not certain that they are sufficient, and maybe more measures will have to be applied in order to force the Iranians to change their policy.  And I want to believe that, if necessary, these measures will be taken.  I kept hearing what the different leaders of the world said about it, and they all said that every option which can be of consequence on this direction should be considered and I agree with this judgment. 

Question: Gwen Ackerman, from Bloomberg News.  Mr. Prime Minister, you said that you’re willing to sit down and talk to the Syrians.  Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said he is willing to talk to you.  What exactly is keeping you guys from sitting down and starting to talk?

PM Olmert:  I said indeed that I am prepared to make peace with Syria.  I hope that the Syrians are prepared to make peace with Israel and I hope that circumstances will allow us to sit together.  That doesn’t mean that when we sit together you have to see us. 

Question:  Ashraf Khalil from the Los Angeles Times.  Recent opinion polls have shown among Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have shown a spike in popularity for Hamas and Ismail Heniya, and a reduction in popularity for Abu Mazen, and in the poll it’s perceived as a result of the lack of any kind of perceived progress in negotiations.  PA officials have said, Said Ereket said last week that if there’s not a conclusive agreement in the final year of the Bush administration than the PA might just disappear.  Your prediction that this year the goal is a basic framework and an outline – that seems like a much slower pace than the Palestinians want.  I guess my question is, what do you think the prospects are for a concrete agreement before the end of the Bush presidency? 

PM Olmert:  First of all sir, you’ll forgive me if I don’t necessarily refer to every opinion poll that is published either here or any other place.  We politicians like the opinion polls only when they show that we are very popular.  But I’m really not familiar with any particular opinion poll upon which you can establish your conclusions or other’s conclusion about the public opinion of the Palestinian people. 

One thing is obvious.  We want to move on with the peace process. I hope that the Palestinians want to move on with the peace process.  I regret that sometimes they choose to delay or to freeze the negotiations between us due to some event which takes place in the battle against terror that we have to conduct in order to protect the lives of Israelis living in the south part of the country.  But as far as we are concerned, we are prepared to talk day and night, every day, as we do without any delays precisely in order to achieve peace as soon as possible.  We also think that it is certainly preferable to try and achieve an understanding between us and the Palestinians while this present administration is in power simply because if it will not take place this year, it will take time for any new administration before it gets into all the complexities which are part of this process and therefore as soon as you can get it, the better it is.  And in this respect, we share the same opinion as the Palestinian negotiators.    We really hope that we can resume the meetings between myself and Abu Mazen as soon as possible and it depends entirely on the Palestinian side.

Question:  Mr. Prime Minister good evening. Liassa Zanir from Russia Today.   Sir, you said quite a few interesting points tonight, but I would like to stop at one point where you said that you’re happy that we don’t know all the details about the meetings you have had with President Abbas. 

PM Olmert:   That’s right.

Zanir:  That gives us the room to assume that certainly something tangible has been reached somewhere between you and President Abbas.  My question is how close or how far are you from reaching an agreement before the end of this year in this case?

PM Olmert:  First of all as I’ve said before, I really genuinely don’t think  that when two sides negotiate such delicate matters as a  possible understanding between us and the Palestinians that on a daily basis all the details must be exposed to the  knowledge of the public.  It makes the process so much more difficult, unnecessarily so.  So indeed there are many details which are not known to everyone and I prefer it to remain so.  I can only say that had I not trusted that there is a chance to reach an understanding, I wouldn’t have started this process of Annapolis.  This process of Annapolis was not imposed on us by anyone.  It expressed the desire of President Bush and Secretary Rice and the American administration, as well as the desire of Israel and the Palestinians, to move on on this process based on our strong conviction that this is possible.  And I say again, this is not impossible.  It depends on us.  It depends on them.  We want it, they want it.  We have to agree.  It’s not easy, it takes time to go through all the major details of such an historic dispute that we have with the Palestinians, but it’s not impossible.  Now as I said, I think that an understanding about the basic parameters that will define accurately the outline for a two-state solution – such an understanding can be reached within the framework of this year.  And we are making the efforts to do.

Question:  Quill Lawrence from WGBH.  Mr. Prime Minister, what has your Government done to shore up and build confidence in the West Bank by easing travel conditions, easing life conditions over there?  And is that something that all of these high profile visitors from the United States have been urging you to do?

PM Olmert:  I don’t think anyone is urging us to do that. We are trying to find the appropriate balance between the security needs and the access and movement needs of the population and this is not simple.  I kept saying sometimes to my partners in this process or to those who are interested from the international community that one event where, as a result of easing up sometimes the security requirements will result in a massive suicidal attack in the heart of Jerusalem or Tel Aviv may ruin the entire process.  Now, how do you make the choice?  It’s not so simple.  We have to be aware of this.

At the same time, I am fully aware of the need of the Palestinian people to have easy access across the West Bank, and to have a much simpler way to move around.  I think we are making efforts.  We will continue to make these efforts, and at the same time we will not forget the need to maintain such security arrangements that will prevent all those who are trying to penetrate into Israel with explosives in order to kill innocent people to do so.  Let us be very honest about this.  The fact that there were very few – almost, almost no terrorist events – except from the one in Hebron, except for the other in Kedumim, except for a few shooting events – in not because of the efficiency of the security forces of the Palestinians.  It is because of the efficiency of the security forces of Israel, of the security arrangements, of the restrictions that are very inconvenient for the Palestinians, but at the same time they can provide the minimum security which is essential in order to create the necessary environment that will allow us and them to sit down and talk.

Lawrence:  Have you done anything to ease that movement?

PM Olmert:  Yes.

Lawrence:  And has that been something that was urged by the Americans?

PM Olmert:  As I said before, you know, you probably didn’t hear me so I’ll repeat it.  We don’t need anyone to remind us; it is in our interest to do it and we do it because we want to create a much simpler and more comfortable environment for negotiations, and yet at the same time, to keep the necessary security which is essential in order to allow this process to develop within the framework of a comfortable environment, and not within the framework of violent confrontations.  No one needs to remind us.  We know it and we want it.

Question:  Mr. Prime Minister, Ben Zegneright from Austrian television.  Obviously as long as Hamas rules in the Gaza Strip, no peace agreement will be implemented there, so you must believe that somehow Hamas will disappear.  Could you tell us how Hamas will disappear and when it will happen?

PM Olmert:  Hamas is an obstacle.  It is not an insurmountable obstacle.  It can be overcome.  When and how is a different question.  I don’t think that I want to go into details here, but I said, and I want to repeat what I said before – we are not talking with Hamas, and we are not going to compromise with someone who is consistently shooting rockets on the heads of Israelis.  We will deal with Hamas in other ways, and these ways will be very painful.

Question:  Isabelle Kirschner, the New York Times.  Mr. Prime Minister, on the one hand you said you want to fight Hamas, and there’s been a very clear decision from the Security Cabinet about continuous action against Hamas.  On the other hand you said that if there’s no shooting from Gaza, then Israel would not have to shoot back.  So I would just like to hear clearly from you, are you ready for a period of calm in the South or not?  And if so, is there any chance of extended that to the West Bank? 

And second question, quickly: is Israel engaged in talks on re-opening the Rafah Crossing?  And if so, under what conditions?

PM Olmert:  The reality – not the dreams – the reality is that the Hamas and the Jihad and the popular committees in Gaza are shooting, on a daily basis, rockets against Israelis.  So I don’t know what exactly you are expecting Israel to do.  I said that we don’t want to be forced to act violently against Palestinians, and this is true.  But the realities are such that they are shooting at us every day, and that a large population in the State of Israel is exposed to this rocket fire.  This is not a prescription for relaxation or compromise.  This is one thing.

There are no negotiations about the Rafah Crossing.  I think that the position of Israel has been made very clear throughout this process.  The Egyptians are in charge of the Philadephi Line, including the Rafah Crossing from the Egyptian side.  There are principles accepted about the opening and closing of the Rafah Crossing and they haven’t changed.  We said, and we haven’t changed our attitude, that we will do everything in our power to maintain the necessary humanitarian services in the Gaza district to the local population, and we will allow the transfer of all the humanitarian needs through all the crossings, including the Rafah Crossing as part of this effort.  But this is as far as I am prepared to go.

Question:  Steve Gutkin from the Associated Press.  Tonight you’ve given a lot of reasons and explanations as to why Israel cannot do certain things, for example in the West Bank.  But my question to you is: are you concerned that the process is in danger of dying even before it has a chance to succeed if you take everything together – the lack of dismantling of the outposts, the continued checkpoints, the building in Jerusalem.  Is there a problem that perhaps the talks could be soured by the situation on the ground?  And if you look at what’s happening to the popularity of Fatah and Abbas compared to the popularity of Hamas, is this cause for concern for you?

PM Olmert:  Everything is a cause of concern for me.  Also terror is a cause of concern for me, and I am sure that you had it in mind, you just forgot to ask about it as well.  But this is also a source of concern, as you can imagine.  I mean, it is not outside of the context.  Everything is part of the context.

Now, I’ll tell you something.  I am familiar with all these obstacles and with all these excuses.  I knew it before, and I am familiar with it now.  If I want an excuse not to negotiate, believe me I have many.  If the other side wants to stop the process and look for excuses, they can find many excuses.  The question is, what do we want?  What do we really want?  We want to try to reach an understanding with the Palestinians, and I believe that Mahmoud Abbas wants to find a way to reach an understanding with us.  Therefore, we will not allow all these obstacles to stand in the way of our efforts.  That doesn’t mean that we can, overnight, change everything.  It will take a longer time.  We all know it, but that should not stop us from making efforts to, first of all, reach an understanding.  Then Israel and the Palestinians will have to implement all their commitments according to the Roadmap, which are many for both sides.  They have to implement their commitments, and we have to implement our commitments.  I am fully aware of what we have to do, and I don’t deny it and I don’t ignore it.  I am fully aware of this.  We have to do it; they have to do it.  In the meantime and in between, we have to talk.  The more we will talk, the better chances are that we will finally reach an understanding that will overcome all these obstacles.

Question:  Mr. Prime Minister, Dion Nissenbaum from the Miami Herald.  As you know, as you’ve been saying, facts on the ground are important for building the trust, and just to follow up on Steve’s question and Quill’s question – with all due respect, the number of roadblocks and obstacles in the West Bank have increased since Annapolis; building in Givat Zeev has increased outside the built-up areas; there’s been no action on illegal outposts at all.  When is Israel going to take some steps to implement its Roadmap obligations?  Because as you’ve said several times tonight, time is running out; there’s really nine months left.

PM Olmert:  I’m not sure that all the facts that you mentioned are accurate, all the elements.  In Givat Zeev, most of the apartments which were approved were already built and paid for by residents for many years.  So there is an exaggeration.

And in any event, I keep saying – and I kept saying it, and I said it before – and I’m sure that you haven’t heard it because otherwise you may have not asked this question.  I explicitly made it clear from the outset to all the parties involved that in the population centers that were mentioned in the letter of President Bush to the Prime Minister of Israel on the 14th of April, 2004, Israelis in the outskirts of Jerusalem – the reality on the ground will continue to change.  This was well-known.  So no one can complain that these are supposedly the facts that are changing the reality to the extent that it makes the negotiations impossible. 

Again, you forgot about terror.  You forgot about the Israelis who were shot at.  You forgot about the Israelis who were shot at by Palestinians who are members of the security forces of the Palestinian Authority.  So, there are difficulties.  As I said before, if someone wants to look for excuses, there are enough excuses for us and for them.  If someone wants to be more powerful than this, if he wants to project more optimism and faith in paving a way through difficulties and hurdles and obstacles that exist in order to lay the foundations for a genuine partnership in the building up of peace, then he has to do what we do.  It is not easy; it takes time; it requires the patience which is not simple both inside his own society and vis-à-vis the other side.  This is what I expect from myself and this is what I expect from my partner.  I am still optimistic in spite of all of this. 

Thank you very much.

Question:  Will you meet with Abu Mazen before Rice arrives here to the region?

PM Olmert:  Rice is in the region.    It depends on him.  I think that he is outside [the region], but if he will come to the region than I will be happy to meet with him any time.

Question:  Abu Mazen is always coming here to Jerusalem.  Do you have any plans to come to Ramallah?

PM Olmert:  I was in Jericho, and I proposed it.  I enjoyed it very much by the way.  The food was wonderful; the hospitality was great; the talks were very pleasant and I hope to be able to do it again.  Why not?  I like to invite Abu Mazen to visit with me in my home, but I’m always happy to get his invitation.

Thank you very much.