Aussie pollies hold talks in Israel
IT was a meeting of former prime ministers when Israel's Ehud Olmert and Australia's Tony Abbott took the stage to address the Strategic Leadership Conference gala dinner at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem on Sunday.
IT was a meeting of former prime ministers when Israel’s Ehud Olmert and Australia’s Tony Abbott took the stage to address the Strategic Leadership Conference gala dinner at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem on Sunday.
More than 170 Israeli, Australian, British and American politicians, diplomats and members of NGOs engaged in an evening of discussion, the culmination of the conference as organised by International Institute for Leadership Dialogue. The initiative, led by Australian businessman and philanthropist Albert Dadon, saw the attendance of other key figures including Australia’s ambassador to Israel, Chris Cannan, Defence Minister Christopher Pyne and Shadow Defence Minister Richard Marles.
Pyne spoke on the growing relationship between Israel and Australia and the “tremendous change” that has blossomed in a “very short few years”.
Abbott’s address followed the release of an article in The Jerusalem Post on the same day, in which he called for the relocation of the Australian embassy to Jerusalem. It was a message that he reaffirmed at the lectern, referring to Jerusalem as “not just the capital of Israel, but the cradle of civilisation”.
Olmert congratulated Abbott on his position as he provided his own assessment on the politics of the region.
Without refuting the responsibility and nature of Hamas, Olmert is “absolutely confident” that the majority of Gazans “wish to live in an entirely different environment and with the people of Israel”.
“And therefore it is incumbent upon us not to focus our efforts and power completely and exclusively on fighting Hamas, but while doing this … to invest our resources, energies and international contacts in order to improve the humanitarian situation so that more and more people in Gaza will separate as much as they can from the immediate and provocative influence of Hamas,” Olmert continued.
“I think this is doable, it is possible, it should be a major part of the agenda of the Israeli government.”
He is also optimistic for a peace deal said to be proposed by US President Donald Trump in the near future.
“The one thing which he [Trump] hates most, is to appear to fail. If he agrees to present a peace plan and to have his name attached to it, then at least it must have a chance of success.”
He added, “If we want to make sure that Israel will continue to live forever as a democratic Jewish state, then there is no way that we can escape a political solution that will separate us from the Palestinians, and that will allow the Palestinians to establish their independent sovereign state in the main part of the territories which are now under the government of Israel.”
REBECCA DAVIS
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