Eisenkot Unity Offer to Likud Excludes PM Rotation

Negotiators for Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot were scheduled to meet Likud representatives at 4 p.m. Sunday at a hotel in Herzliya to explore the possibility of forming a unity government. They planned to present an opening offer that does not include a rotation of the premiership with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Walla reports that Eisenkot's team intends to arrive with an initial proposal under which Likud would join a government headed by Eisenkot, without the other parties of the right-wing bloc. That government would serve a full four-year term, with Eisenkot as prime minister throughout.

At this stage, Eisenkot's negotiators do not plan to offer Netanyahu a rotation agreement or any division of the term between the two leaders. The terms are expected to cause significant friction with the Likud side.

For Eisenkot's camp, the starting point for talks is that Likud recognize the election results and agree to join a government led by Eisenkot for four years.

Despite the preparations, both sides believe the chances of a political breakthrough are low for now. According to the report, both camps see the meeting at this point as mainly a media exercise rather than a negotiation likely to produce a real agreement on a joint government.

Political observers also believe Eisenkot and his allies want first to exhaust the option of forming a government through agreements with the chareidi parties, backed by support from the Arab parties. If that route reaches a dead end, the talks with Likud are expected to take on broader political significance.

For now, the Herzliya meeting is expected to serve mainly as an initial test of each side's positions and its willingness to consider cooperation. The main gap between them concerns who will serve as prime minister and for how long.