Free Republic

Dec. 22, 2004 18:04 | Updated Dec. 22, 2004 18:38 FM Shalom: PA needs to back words with actions By JPOST.COM STAFF In an interview with Army Radio Wednesday evening, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said that despite positive rhetoric, the Palestinian Authority has as of yet done nothing to reduce terrorism. Although the late Yasser Arafat was replaced with an apparently more moderate leadership which has claimed willingness to return to the negotiating table, Shalom said that they are sending a positive message but will ultimately be tested by their actions, not by their words. "The attempts to harm us...

Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat is dictating to the PA a policy intended to buy time until the US elections in November, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom told the cabinet Sunday. Shalom said Arafat's hope is that the results of the elections will create a new political situation that, with the assistance of the European Union, will allow him to improve his international position and make him once again a viable Palestinian negotiating partner. Shalom said he opposes recent UN and EU initiatives to give Arafat "freedom of movement." In my opinion," Shalom told the cabinet, "the only freedom of movement...

Friday, September 24, 2004 Shabbat Shalom and Gmar Hatima Tov by Caitlyn M. Martin Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar and the most solemn day in the Jewish year, starts at sundown this evening. (As of this writing it has already started in Israel.) For Jews around the world it is a time of fasting, prayer, and repentance. In Israel everything shuts down for Yom Kippur, from television and radio stations, to public transportation, to all non-emergency government services. Most Israeli Jews, even those who normally consider themselves secular, will be in a synagogue for Kol Nidre...

Officials confirmed Monday that a senior Israeli diplomat in Washington met several times with Larry Franklin, a Pentagon analyst being investigated by the FBI on suspicion he passed classified information on Iran to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. However, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom - denying allegations of espionage - said such meetings are commonplace and the two governments routinely share secrets. "Israel and the United States have intimate ties ... and the information being exchanged is much more classified than any conversation that may have taken place," Shalom told a joint news conference with his German counterpart, Joschka Fischer....

EU says it would reconsider position on PA if Abu Ala resigns After meeting FM Shalom in Jerusalem, EU foreign affairs chief Solana says if Abu Ala ends up just as Abu Mazen, conclusions could be drawn. Gil Horev Solana (right) and Shalom today in Jerusalem (Foreign Ministry photo). If Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei (Abu Ala) resigns we would have to reconsider our position regarding the Palestinian Authority, European Union foreign affairs chief Javier Solana has stated. During a press conference he held with Foreign Minister Sylvan Shalom after a joint meeting this (Thursday) afternoon in Jerusalem, Solana said,...

Israeli adviser: Egypt proposing Mideast peace conference Thursday, July 22, 2004 Posted: 5:42 AM EDT (0942 GMT) JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Egypt is proposing a Mideast peace conference in October, according to Moshe Debi, an adviser to Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom. The October talks would include Israeli and Palestinian foreign ministers, as well as foreign ministers from the "Mideast Quartet" -- the United Nations, the United States, the European Union and Russia, Debi said.

Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom jettisoned diplomatic niceties and labeled a European Union condemnation of the IDF's demolition of buildings in Rafah as "hypocrisy" and "callousness." "There is no limit to the callousness and hypocrisy that found its expression in the statement of the Irish presidency of the EU," Shalom said in a statement. The EU statement, issued by Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen, called on Israel to immediately halt the demolition "of Palestinian homes" in Rafah. Cowen's statement said that the Quartet, at its meeting on May 4 in New York, "called on Israel to take steps to respect the...

Dec. 11, 2003 Shalom meets Pope By HERB KEINON Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom met Pope John Paul II in the Vatican Thursday and praised senior representatives of the Church for speaking out against anti-Semitism in general and anti-Semitism in the Arab world in particular. Shalom said there is a need for Israel and the Vatican to work together to fight the rise of anti-Semitism in Europe and around the world. "We should not leave anti-Semitic statements without a response," Shalom said. "Verbal terror leads to violence and to the types of terror attacks we are seeing in Israel and around...

Jerusalem, November 20, 2003 FM Shalom extends condolences to Turkey and the United Kingdom (Communicated by the Foreign Minister's Bureau) Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Silvan Shalom expressed his deep shock over the attacks in Istanbul today (November 20, 2003). He extended condolences on behalf of Israel to the government and peoples of both Turkey and the United Kingdom. Foreign Minister Shalom stated, "Democtratic countries will not surrender to terrorism. They will fight againt it wherever it strikes. Terror is a global phenomenon and the community of nations must unite against it while ensuring the values of...

Jerusalem, November 16, 2003 Cabinet Communique (Communicated by the Cabinet Secretariat)At the weekly Cabinet meeting today (Sunday), November 16, 2003: 1. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon sent condolences in the name of the Government and people of Israel to the families of those who were murdered in the double terrorist attack yesterday (Saturday), November 15, 2003, in Istanbul, and also sent his best wishes for a speedy and complete recovery to those who were wounded. The Prime Minister said that we have seen yet again that terror knows no boundaries, does not differentiate between religion or blood and that its purpose...

Diplomatic Contacts ©GPO/Moshe Milner FM Silvan Shalom lays a wreath in memory of the victims at the Neve Shalom Synagogue in Instanbul (Nov 16, 2003) Nov 16: FM Silvan Shalom arrived in Istanbul on Sunday morning to visit the scenes of Saturday's bomb attacks on two synagogues and to meet with his Turkish counterpart, Abdullah Gul and leaders of the Istanbul Jewish community. He will continue to Brussels and Vienna to meet with foreign ministers of the EU-member states to discuss anti-Semitism and recent events in Europe. The site then links to this Ha'aretz article:Last Update: 16/11/2003 16:24 Shalom says...

Oct. 26, 2003 Shalom: France, Belgium giving $7 million to 'Geneva' group By HERB KEINON France and Belgium have pledged $7 million to the developers of the "Geneva Initiative" freelance peace plan drawn up by Israeli and Palestinian former government officials and politicians, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said Sunday. Shalom told the weekly Cabinet meeting that the government has registered protests with the two countries for their support of this unofficial, non-government venture. He did not elaborate at the meeting on the nature of the protest. The initiative's developers, led by Yossi Beilin, were in Europe last week seeking support....

Statement by Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom following meeting with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer Berlin, October 22, 2003 (Communicated by the Foreign Minister's Media Adviser) Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom with German FM Joschka Fischer in Berlin (Oct 22, 2003) I have just concluded a very constructive and important meeting with my good friend, Foreign Minister Fischer. Our discussions covered the full range of issues, including bilateral relations between Israel and Germany, the Middle East peace process and other regional issues of mutual concern. The Foreign Minister updated me on his visit to Tehran this week. I reiterated the cardinal importance...

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom, on a visit to a former concentration camp on Wednesday, denounced growing anti-Semitism in the Muslim world after Malaysia's prime minister told a summit of Islamic countries that Jews ruled the world. Visiting an exhibit on the Jewish prisoners held at the former Sachsenhausen concentration camp north of Berlin, Shalom said the camp demonstrated the consequences of failing to stand up to anti-Semitism. Some 200,000 people - political prisoners, Poles, Soviet POWs as well as Jews, were imprisoned at Sachsenhausen under the Nazis and tens of thousands died. "Today we are dealing with a new...

Oct. 15, 2003 Israel: Palestinian terrorists out to harm peacemakers By JPOST.COM STAFF The deadly road bomb attack on US convoy in Gaza Strip, in which three Americans were killed (see story), has drawn a multitude of Israeli, Palestinian and American reactions: Israel: No one is immune to Palestinian terrorism Israeli officials said the attack underscored the need to dismantle Palestinian terror groups — a requirement of the stalled, US-backed "road map" peace plan that Palestinian leaders have refused to carry out. Officials said Palestinian terrorists are trying to harm even those out to help the Palestinian cause, and that...

Following is the text of Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom's speech to the United Nations 58th General Assembly on Thursday, 25 September 2003, as released by the Government Press Office. Mr. Secretary General, Mr. President, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to congratulate His Excellency, the Foreign Minister of St. Lucia, upon his assumption of the presidency of the General Assembly, and wish him much success. Mr. President, Until just one month ago, every person in this hall and every member of this organization joined us in the hope that the Middle East peace process might finally be back...

Speaking before the United Nations' international conference on counter-terrorism, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom on Monday denounced the recent UN resolution demanding Israel retract threats to remove Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat. "Ten years have passed since Arafat vowed to put a peaceful end to the conflict with Israel," Shalom said to the some 20 heads of state attending the conference. "In those ten years, 1126 Israelis were murdered in over 19,000 terror attacks, including 102 suicide bombings. "This is equivalent to the death of 56,000 Americans This massacre has got to stop." Shalom stressed: "Supporting Arafat contradicts all Mideast peace...

The international community is na ve to believe that Palestinian Chairman Yasser Arafat will independently relinquish control over the terror groups and the Palestinian security forces, Foreign minister Silvan Shalom said Thursday. Israel and the United State have called for the unification of the Palestinian security forces and it is one of the Palestinian's obligations under the US-backed road map peace plan. "The international community does not understand Arafat's mentality or that of the Middle East," Shalom said. "To ask him to relinquish control over the [PA] finances, security forces and the terror organizations is like asking him to jump...

Sep. 11, 2003 Cabinet debates Arafat expulsion By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS The security Cabinet debated Thursday whether to expel Yasser Arafat, and Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said a majority of his colleagues support the initiative. However, Shalom noted that Sharon might not put the issue to a vote because the United States is not expected to approve such a far-reaching decision. Sharon has vetoed the idea in the past because of Washington's disapproval. "We are in a situation in which [US] approval for this, in case we asked for it, would be almost impossible to obtain," Shalom told Israel Army...

Jerusalem, September 11, 2003 FM Expresses Condolences to Swedish Government and People (Communicated by the Foreign Ministry Spokesman) Minister of Foreign Affairs Silvan Shalom expressed today (September 11, 2003) the condolences of the government and people of Israel to the Swedish government and nation over the murder of Foreign Minister Anna Lindh. Foreign Minister Shalom asked that his personal sympathy also be expressed to the Lindh family for their loss. The Minister expressed outright condemnation of the criminal murder that took the life of a leader who guided Sweden’s foreign policy over the past five years. Any resort to such...