Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I do not disagree with any of what the Deputy has said. I hope we are talking about how to change it and the approach that will achieve that. My view is that there is a hope and expectation at present. I have met senior Palestinian leaders in Ramallah on this issue, as well as many Israeli politicians. I have met the Israeli ambassador on multiple occasions to discuss this issue. There is a hope and expectation that, as a result of the relationship between Israel and the current US Administration, there may be a new initiative in the next few months. Our focus, as politicians and as a Government, needs to be to try to influence that initiative to ensure that it is one the European Union and Ireland can support in terms of what it asks of both sides. That is what I have been trying to do. I have met the senior US negotiator, Jason Greenblatt, in Jerusalem and New York. It is an important issue for me personally. It is something into which I want to put a lot of time. It is not a coincidence that I will be back in Ramallah and Jerusalem, and probably the Gaza Strip, in January or February. If people have suggestions or want to talk to me in detail in advance of that visit, I will be happy to accommodate them.

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