BICOM

Israel’s Finance Minister and leader of Yesh Atid, Yair Lapid, yesterday set out his views on the peace process in an interview with Charlie Rose on Bloomberg television, declaring himself “a devoted supporter of the peace process”.   He declined to give details on the current negotiations underway, but did comment that low expectations on both sides regarding the current talks could enable progress to be made.

Lapid elaborated on some of the issues which remain major points of disagreement, agreeing that a number of West Bank settlements would need to be evacuated in order for a deal to be reached with the Palestinian Authority. However, when probed by Rose, Lapid said that Jerusalem would remain undivided and is central to the idea of the Jewish state.

Lapid also appeared to oppose a position held by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying that “I don’t feel we need a declaration from the Palestinians that they recognize Israel as a Jewish state,” explaining that after two thousand years of dispersion “We [the Jewish people] are now independent and make our own rules.” Earlier this week, Netanyahu delivered a speech at Bar Ilan University in which he posited that Palestinian refusal to recognise Israel as the Jewish nation state was the root cause of the continued conflict.

During the interview, Lapid also addressed Iran’s nuclear development. He quoted John Kerry, saying that “A bad deal is worse than no deal,” when it comes to Iran’s nuclear programme. Lapid added that diplomatic moves must be buttressed by a “credible military threat behind it.” Asked about his own political ambitions, Lapid answered “[In] some of the things, we need a dramatic change, and it doesn’t matter if I do it as minister or prime minister.”