Livni sets time limit on coalition talks
Tzipi Livni gives herself coalition deadline - Image licensed under Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 License
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Thursday, 23, Oct 2008 07:05
Israel's Tzipi Livni has set herself a deadline of this Sunday to form a coalition government.
The Kadima chairperson told party members that a decision would have to be made by the end of the weekend on whether to create a government or hold snap elections.
Ms Livni, formerly Israel's foreign minister, has been struggling to establish agreement with Israel's minority parties which would allow her to become prime minister.
"My tendency in the wake of the primaries was to go to general elections, yet I thought it would be appropriate to form a stable government," Ynetnews quoted her as saying.
"We have an agreement with Labour and we presented decent proposals to the other parties… the proposals submitted are socially minded and enable potential partners to present achievements to their voters."
The political crisis follows the resignation of former prime minister Ehud Olmert, who announced he would stand down earlier this year because of an ongoing corruption case against him.
The wider Middle Eastern region is carefully observing the negotiations.
Senior Israeli officials are reported to be interested in looking again at a 2002 Arab peace initiative which would see Arab countries recognise Israel in exchange for a series of key concessions, including a retreat back to pre-1967 borders.
But no progress can be made until a government is formed, meaning Ms Livni's choice of allies could make the difference between Israel acceptance or rejection of a revived deal.