BRUSSELS
The President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy met with the Israeli President Shimon Peres in Brussels.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Peres, Herman Van Rompuy underlined that they were against seeing Israel expand illegal residential areas on Palestinian territory under Israeli occupation.
"This is the time for bold and solid steps. The sides (Israel and Palestine) must begin direct and comprehensive talks. There could be no sustainable peace unless Palestine's desire for an independent state and Israel's need for security are fulfilled and a two-state solution is reached through peace talks. I reminded Peres that the EU was against Israel's illegal residential areas," Rompuy stressed.
Shimon Peres, in his part, argued that the greatest obstacle for peace was "not Jewish settlements but Hamas terror".
President Peres thanked the EU for providing commercial privileges to his country and taking a decision in 2012 to cooperate with Israel in around 60 fields, including agriculture, science and transportation.
