Abbas: We will not make unilateral declaration of Palestinian statehood

           Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ruled out a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state, saying that there was no possibility of having an independent state without Israel's collaboration, Qatar-based news channel Al-Jazeera reported on Saturday. "At this stage there is no option to declare a Palestinian state without Israel's collaboration," Abbas said in an interview aired on Al-Jazeera. "A Palestinian state will be established only with agreement from Israel." Abbas warned however, that there would be dangerous repercussions if there would be no progress on the matter by September. "The results could be devastating," Abbas said, adding that "it could lead to an Intifada or a popular Palestinian uprising." Abbas also criticized United States President Barack Obama for his failure to put an end to the settlement construction and resolve the Middle East crisis. "They could have done a lot more, but they failed," Abbas said about the U.S. The PA president also told Al Jazeera that Israel agreed during the administration of former U.S. President George Bush to return to 1967 borders and to the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. Abbas' statement came after Russian President Dmitry Medvedev endorsed last week a Palestinian state, saying Moscow had recognized independence in 1988 and was not changing the position adopted by the former Soviet Union. Israel has been alarmed in the past two months by a string of recognitions by Latin American states including Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, which some analysts say could be a precursor to a move by the Palestinians to seek full United Nations membership if efforts to revive moribund peace negotiations fall through. In the past Abbas confirmed that a unilateral declaration was an option. (15,25)