Foreign diplomats pour in Paris for Mideast peace talks

PARIS (AA) - More than 70 world diplomats gathered for an international conference in the French capital on Sunday to urge restart of the stalled peace talks between Israel and Palestine.

According to diplomatic sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Ankara supported a "permanent" and 'comprehensive" solution in the Middle East.

The minister also said that ending the Israeli occupation in the Palestinian territory and establishing a Palestinian state was important for peace in the region.

The conference is the first meeting held at this level in nine years. Although around 70 countries will attend, Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced they would not participate.

On Saturday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas welcomed the event at the inauguration of the Palestinian Embassy to the Holy See.

"We praise the role of President (Francois) Hollande and the French government in organizing this international conference, and we call upon the participants to take concrete measures in order to implement international law and the U.N. resolutions," Abbas said.

Although Palestinians welcomed the meeting, Israel's Netanyahu described the conference convening in Paris as "useless".

"It is being coordinated between the French and the Palestinians. Its goal is to try and force terms on Israel that conflict with our national needs," he said during his weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday.

He said the conference "pushes peace further away because it hardens the Palestinian positions" and "it also pushes them away from direct negotiations without preconditions."

"I must say that this conference is among the last twitches of yesterday's world. Tomorrow's world will be different – and it is very near," said Netanyahu, referring to the term of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump which is scheduled to start on Jan. 20.

Diplomatic sources say that by hosting this conference, Paris aims to send a strong message to Trump, who made controversial remarks suggesting he would be more favorable towards Israel than President Barack Obama.

Speaking during the event, French President Francois Hollande said the two-state solution has lately been under threat, also criticizing those who said holding such a conference was 'naive'.

"It would be naive to consider that bridging the gap between Israel and its neighbors, so necessary, is possible without progressing towards peace between Israelis and Palestinians," he said during the speech.

Hollande said earlier that the conference aims at reviving the international community’s support for a two-state solution. “Peace will only be done by the Israelis and Palestinians, nobody else. Only bilateral negotiations can succeed,” Hollande said.

Another peace meeting brokered by the U.S. deadlocked in April 2014.

In 2014, France’s Parliament passed a draft recognition of the state of Palestine. Last January, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said that France would recognize a Palestinian state if negotiations fail.

While the Palestinian Liberation Organization has welcomed the French peace initiative, which was first proposed early last year, Israel has said it would only participate in bilateral talks with the Palestinian leadership.

Both Netanyahu and Abbas say they are open to the idea of bilateral talks but continue to blame each other for the lack of progress in the moribund peace process.