Netanyahu Said to Be Ready to Negotiate on Basis of 1967 Lines

Business Week:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be willing to resume talks with the Palestinians on the basis of the 1967 boundary line, which would mean withdrawing from West Bank territory, Israel’s Channel Two television said yesterday.

An Israeli official, speaking anonymously because of the sensitivity of the subject, said that as part of Israel’s effort to return to peace talks and counter a Palestinian bid for UN recognition, Israel is willing to accept a U.S. proposal on borders. Netanyahu had publicly rejected U.S. President Barack Obama’s call to use the 1967 boundaries as a starting point for negotiations when the two leaders met at the White House May 21.

Obama had called for negotiations that would establish a Palestinian state based on the line that existed before Israel captured the West Bank and Jerusalem in the 1967 war with Arab nations. The proposal included provisions for land swaps that would allow Israel to keep some large West Bank settlements in return for offsetting land on the Israel side of the 1967 line.