Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Wednesday that renewed peace talks with the Palestinians were unlikely to get anywhere within the one-year time frame set by the United States. “It's clear that the two sides are so different - in content, in approach - that it's hard to talk about a peace agreement within a year,” Lieberman told Israeli public radio, adding that he saw no point in extending a settlement freeze due to expire next month. He also said that it would be unacceptable to extend a slowdown on West Bank settlement construction, even as Mideast peace talks get under way next week. Avigdor Lieberman said he realized that resuming settlement construction would antagonize both the US and the Palestinians. But he said that maintaining tight restrictions on building would “punish” tens of thousands of people in the settlements. “We don't need to create unnecessary conflicts but we don't need to punish and we don't need to fold either,” he said. Lieberman's comments added a powerful voice to a debate that is having deep repercussions for the US-backed peace process. A 10-month moratorium on most West Bank construction expires Sept. 26 and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under heavy domestic pressure to allow its resumption. Resuming construction in the settlements could spell disaster for the peace talks before they even get off the ground. But leaving the moratorium in place could cause Netanyahu's hardline Israeli government to crumble. Government spokesman, Mark Regev, refused to say what Netanyahu would do after the settlement slowdown expires. Israeli officials said they hope to reach some sort of arrangement before next week's summit launching the peace talks in Washington. But an agreement is far from certain. After months of shuttle diplomacy, the US announced last week that direct talks between Israelis and Palestinians would resume on Sept. 2 at the White House. The US hopes to forge a final peace settlement within one year. The Palestinians say the settlements, interspersed among some 2.4 million Palestinians, are gobbling up land they want for a future state. The international community considers them illegal, and US President Barack Obama has been an outspoken critic.
