Israel's U.S. envoy: 'No one can force us to make peace'

Any outside attempt to impose a deal would be like 'forcing somebody to fall in love', says ambassador.

Outsiders cannot force peace on the Middle East and any final settlement will have to be initiated by the Israelis and Palestinians themselves, Israel's Washington envoy said on Saturday.

In an interview with U.S. television station PBS, Ambassador Michael Oren said that any attempt by the United States to impose a peace deal would be like "forcing somebody to fall in love".

Asked if Israel wanted the Washington to present its own peace plan, Oren said:

"No. I think peace has to be made between two people sitting opposite a table. America can help facilitate that interaction. But at the end of the day, no one can force parties in any conflict in the world to make peace. It's like forcing somebody to fall in love. We have to sit down and thresh it out between us."

Oren added: "If we arrive at points where we can't agree, we can't close the gap between us, then we - both the Israelis and the Palestinians as well - are willing to look at various bridging formulas."

"But America is not in a position where it's going to come in and impose a plan. I don't think that's to anybody's benefit. And I'm sure parties on all sides of this conflict understand that." More

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