From: Terje Rod-Larsen <1 To: 1"[email protected] <[email protected]> Subject: Fw: The Media Line MidEast Daily Date: Thu, 14 Apr 2011 20:46:08 +0000 From: [email protected] <[email protected]> To: [email protected] <[email protected]> Sent: Thu Apr 14 05:05:24 2011 Subject: The Media Line MidEast Daily ;WouTu ;Facebo be ter ok Donor Nations Deem Palestinian Authority "Above Threshold of State" An independent Palestinian state came closer to fruition in Brussels on Wednesday when representatives of donor nations deemed the Palestinian Authority to be "above the threshold of a functioning state: The declaration was made by the session's chairman, Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gare Stor. In response, Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said it amounts to "a birth certificate for the reality of Palestinian statehood." With peace talks with Israel deadlocked, the Palestinians have been threatening to abandon the American- led process and move to the United Nations General Assembly for a resolution recognizing a Palestinian state. Although Israel vehemently opposes such a move, the thumbs-up from the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee gives increased credibility to the threat. Efforts by the Quartet - the international sponsors of the Israeli- Palestinian peace process including the U.S.; European Union: and Russia — meanwhile have ground to a virtual halt, the latest indication being the cancellation of a scheduled meeting in Berlin. Despite the latest boost, mixed signals have come from Palestinian leadership. Fayyad continues to say the Palestinians "don't need another declaration of statehood" and has cited the importance of Israeli recognition of statehood. M. head Mahmoud 'Abbas, on the other hand, more frequently speaks of plans for declaring a state. Ghassan Khatib, director of the Government Media Center, told The Media Line on Thursday that there are no plans for a u