France was to push Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for a breakthrough in Middle East peace talks Thursday, after warning it may go ahead and recognise a Palestinian state this year. Netanyahu was due to meet with French President Nicolas Sarkozy to lobby him in his campaign against a unity pact signed by the two main Palestinian factions, which he has described as a threat to peace and security.
Sarkozy implied in an interview with L’Express news weekly on Wednesday that France could recognise a Palestinian declaration of statehood if peace talks remain in stalemate, as they have been since last September.
