On November 25, 2009, to help "launch meaningful negotiations," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu proposed "a policy of restraint regarding a suspension of new permits and new construction in Judea and Samaria (West Bank) for a period of ten months." The "freeze" or "moratorium" does not apply to 3,000 housing units under construction, to schools, synagogues, and public buildings, to infrastructure needed for national security, or to Jerusalem. He later said that Israel would "revert to the policies of previous governments in relation to construction" at the end of the ten months. Secretary Clinton said that the proposal "helps move forward" the peace process and that through "good faith negotiations the parties can mutually agree on an outcome which ends the conflict and reconciles the Palestinian goal of a independent and viable state based on the 1967 lines, with agreed swaps, and the Israeli goal of a Jewish state with secure and recognized borders that reflect subsequent developments and meet Israeli security requirements." Special Middle East Envoy George Mitchell said that the Israeli step "falls short of a full settlement freeze, but it is more than any Israeli government has done before…" He noted that "the number of buildings under construction will decline since, as each new building is completed, there will be no new building started. So implementation of the moratorium could mean much less settlement construction than would occur if there is no moratorium." He also expressed a desire to get a "resolution of the issue of borders, so that there will no longer be any question about settlement construction, so that Israelis will be able to build what they want in Israel, and the Palestinians will be able to build what they want in Palestine." The Palestinians criticized Israel for not freezing all settlement activity or including Jerusalem. President Abbas described it as "insufficient" and "unacceptable." On December 28, Israel underscored that a "unified" Jerusalem is its capital and excluded from the freeze when it announced plans to build 692 news housing units in East Jerusalem. The White House Press Secretary responded, saying The United States opposes new Israeli construction in East Jerusalem. The status of Jerusalem is a permanent status issue that must be resolved by the parties through negotiations…. Neither party should engage in efforts or take actions that could unilaterally preempt, or appear to preempt, negotiations. Rather, both parties should return to negotiations without preconditions as soon as possible…. We believe that through good faith negotiations the parties can mutually agree on an outcome that realizes the aspirations of both parties for Jerusalem, and safeguards its status for people around the world. In December, President Abbas pledged that, as long as he is in office, he "will not allow anybody to start a new intifadah ." At the same time, he called on the international community and on the United States to pressure the Israeli government. The Obama Administration began 2010 with a renewed effort to restart negotiations. Media reports suggested that it was preparing "letters of guarantee" that would assure the Palestinians that the 1967 borders would form the basis of the negotiations and the Israelis that post-1967 demographic changes (some settlements) would be taken in to account. Secretary Clinton said that the Administration was working "to take the steps needed to relaunch the negotiations as soon as possible and without preconditions." She again stated that a solution would reconcile "the Palestinian goal of an independent and viable state based on the 1967 lines, with agreed swaps, and the Israeli goal of a Jewish state with secure and recognized borders." Later, on January 8, she may have attempted to blur the 2009 U.S. focus on Israeli settlements, saying "resolving borders resolves settlements, resolving Jerusalem resolves settlements…." On January 6, Mitchell was interviewed on the Public Broadcasting System's Charlie Rose Show, and expressed hope for progress on three tracks: political negotiations, security, and Palestinian economic growth and institution building. (These tracks are identical to those suggested by Netanyahu in his March 31, 2009 address to the Knesset. ) Mitchell claimed that Netanyahu's 10-month moratorium is "more significant than any action taken by any previous government of Israel for the 40 years that the settlement enterprise has existed." He stated that Israeli security and the establishment of a Palestinian state are "mutually reinforcing" in that "Palestinians are not going to get a state until the people of Israel have a reasonable sense of sustainable security. The Israelis … are not going to get that reasonable sense of sustainable security until there is a Palestinian state." Mitchell also said that negotiations should last no more than two years and "it can be done within that period of time" or a shorter period of time. Mitchell also said that the United States is seeking a "parallel process" in which "as the Israelis and Palestinians talk in negotiations, Israel, the Palestinians, and all the surrounding countries would meet to deal with regional issues, energy, water, trade, communications, transport…." He seemed to discourage an Israeli-Hamas prisoner exchange because it "will not build confidence in the Palestinian Authority because it will, in fact, be seen as a validation of Hamas's tactics, which is violent resistance." When Rose asked if the United States had any "sticks," Mitchell responded, "the United States can withhold support on loan guarantees to Israel." Some media outlets interpreted this as a threat; so the State Department later clarified that he was not signaling a course of action. Mitchell himself had added, "we think the way to approach this is to try to persuade the parties what is in their self interests." On January 8, a Palestinian newspaper summarized Palestinian ideas about peace negotiations, reportedly formulated by Saeb Erekat, head of the PLO Negotiations Department and Umar Suleiman, Egypt's intelligence chief. First, the goal should be a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital based on the 1967 borders. This could include exchanges of land of similar value. Second, Israeli settlement activity, including natural growth and in Jerusalem, should stop completely for six months. Third, negotiations should resume from the point reached in December 2008 with former Israeli Prime Minister Olmert and include all final status issues. On January 12, President Abbas said for the first time that he might restart negotiations if Israel froze settlement expansions for "a fixed period." He also said, "We don't want (U.S.) guarantees. We want (the United States) to tell Israel to fully freeze settlements for a period of time and then we will resume negotiations." Prior to Mitchell's arrival in Israel, on January 20, Netanyahu asserted that in order "to effectively stop the infiltration of rockets and other weaponry … will require an Israeli presence on the eastern side of the future state," i.e., in the Jordan Valley. An Abbas spokesman replied, "We will not accept anything less than a completely sovereign Palestinian state on all the territories with its own borders, resources and airspace, and we will not accept any Israeli presence, either military or civilian, on our land." Mitchell made his ninth visit to the region from January 21-25. The State Department issued a statement on January 27 that he had continued a "two-pronged approach … (1) To encourage the parties to enter negotiations to reach an agreement on all permanent status issues; and (2) to help the Palestinians build the economy and institutions that will be necessary when a Palestinian state is established. The two objectives are mutually reinforcing. Each is essential. Neither can be attained without the other." Earlier, Netanyahu had said that Mitchell presented "interesting ideas" on how to restart negotiations. Reportedly, the ideas included confidence-building measures such as the withdrawal of Israel forces from more territory in the West Bank, release of prisoners, preliminary talks on a low level, and/or proximity talks, with Mitchell shuttling between Jerusalem and Ramallah to convey messages on core issues of borders, Jerusalem, security, and refugees. A Palestinian official said that Abbas did not favor resuming negotiations at any level before a complete cessation of settlement activity, including in east Jerusalem. After meeting the envoy, Netanyahu visited settlements. On January 24, at Etzyon, he proclaimed, "This place will be an inseparable part of the state of Israel for eternity," and at Ma'ale Adumim, he affirmed, "We are here, and we will stay here and build here as part of sovereign Jerusalem." On January 29, in Ari'el, he declared, "Here is where our forefathers dwelled and here is where we will stay and build…. Ari'el … will be an integral, inseparable part of the state of Israel in any future arrangement." While his statements appeared provocative, it has long been assumed that Israel would retain those large settlements in a final agreement in exchange for other land being given to the new Palestinian state. In a January interview with Time magazine, President Obama assessed the first year of his Administration's involvement in the Israel-Palestinian peace process. He said, "This is as intractable problem as you get. Both sides … have found that the political environment, the nature of their coalitions or the divisions within their societies, were such that it was very hard for them to start engaging in a meaningful conversation. And I think that we overestimated our ability to persuade them to do so when their politics ran contrary to that…. (I)f we had anticipated some of these problems … earlier, we might not have raised expectations as high." On January 28, President Abbas told Russian television that Jerusalem should not be divided and that there should be free passage for people of various faiths. He added that it must be made clear what belongs to the Palestinians and what belongs to Israel. Abbas also said that he could only recognize Israel as a Jewish state in the framework of a conclusive peace agreement that leads to the establishment of a Palestinian state. He could not resume negotiations as long as construction in West Bank settlements and East Jerusalem continues.