:00:07. > :00:17.dozen cabinet posts. He has played such a key role in shaping his
:00:17. > :00:21.
:00:21. > :00:31.The president of Israel is 90. Shimon Peres is the oldest head of
:00:31. > :00:32.
:00:32. > :00:40.state in the world. He is even oldest than his country -- old. --
:00:40. > :00:48.he is even older than his country. He played a defining role in
:00:48. > :00:54.Israel's past. But the amazing thing about him. He
:00:54. > :00:59.has been right there at every critical point in Israel's history.
:00:59. > :01:04.He is the ultimate survivor. A politician who kept losing a
:01:04. > :01:12.lecterns but kept going. When you look at his career, you don't see
:01:12. > :01:22.any political principle, except the principle that he has to be there.
:01:22. > :01:24.
:01:24. > :01:34.want to know, how does Shimon Peres being both doer and dreamer?
:01:34. > :01:39.
:01:39. > :01:49.didn't change. It's as simple as that. Mr Peres, and you can't, I've
:01:49. > :02:13.
:02:13. > :02:20.Reaching 90 is a landmark for anyone. The birthday party for this
:02:20. > :02:30.president was something else. A spectacle.
:02:30. > :02:30.
:02:30. > :02:38.His friends and fans came from far and wide. Birthday, he is 90, now he
:02:38. > :02:46.is president, what comes next? Britain, we have our Queen, and you
:02:46. > :02:55.have your Shimon Peres. He is now in a largely ceremonial
:02:55. > :03:02.role. Enjoying popularity he only dream job as a politician. At 90, he
:03:02. > :03:10.is still hard at work. Israel's best-known ambassador. That is an
:03:10. > :03:13.exaggeration. You have to inspect the calendar as well. How does it
:03:13. > :03:23.feel to be having your 90th birthday party while the whole nation is
:03:23. > :03:24.
:03:24. > :03:29.watching? You must be happy to reach 90? What is the alternative?His
:03:29. > :03:37.birthday party was part of a three-day conference. It was
:03:37. > :03:47.labelled Shaping Tomorrow. The sum is rarely is, it went too far. --
:03:47. > :03:48.
:03:48. > :03:56.for some Israelis. In time of oppression, in raising taxes, people
:03:56. > :04:03.looked at it in very strange way. For others, it was a way to
:04:03. > :04:08.celebrate a man who has been part of their history. He has been in a
:04:08. > :04:13.leadership role for the past 65 years. There is a part of Israelis
:04:13. > :04:23.but don't want to let go of that period, they don't want to let go of
:04:23. > :04:33.
:04:33. > :04:41.their founding fathers. Israel is hold on to their history .
:04:41. > :04:51.They see it as key to their survival. Theodor Herzl, the
:04:51. > :04:53.
:04:53. > :05:03.foundation of Israel. At every decisive juncture, Shimon Peres has
:05:03. > :05:06.
:05:06. > :05:11.played a decisive role. Shimon Peres was born in what was
:05:11. > :05:21.then Poland at 1923. The sun of a librarian and they'd timber
:05:21. > :05:22.
:05:22. > :05:31.merchant. -- the son of a librarian and a timber merchant. He joined the
:05:31. > :05:40.youth movement. It wasn't long before he stood with the men who
:05:40. > :05:50.were tasked with them role of building Israel. He became the
:05:50. > :05:58.
:05:58. > :06:02.youngest ever general of the defence Ministry.
:06:02. > :06:09.The United States and Britain refused to sell arms to the new
:06:09. > :06:19.state. So Shimon Peres turned to France. The single-minded
:06:19. > :06:22.
:06:22. > :06:32.determination came cheap define his career. -- came to define.
:06:32. > :06:39.
:06:39. > :06:43.He succeeded to get the weapons Israel needed. Today, Israel has the
:06:43. > :06:53.most advanced military in the Middle East. Including significant
:06:53. > :06:53.
:06:53. > :07:03.airpower. The man who bought the first plane is still brings side. --
:07:03. > :07:11.
:07:11. > :07:21.ringside. Even on days when Israel is talking
:07:21. > :07:22.
:07:22. > :07:32.about making peace, it has always been about peace and security. The
:07:32. > :07:37.
:07:37. > :07:47.two have always been linked in the life of Shimon Peres. I didn't
:07:47. > :07:47.
:07:47. > :07:57.change. If somebody wants... If somebody wants... It's as simple as
:07:57. > :08:10.
:08:10. > :08:20.that. In the early years, it prevailed. He
:08:20. > :08:20.
:08:20. > :08:30.did it despite fierce opposition here and abroad. You pushed almost
:08:30. > :08:33.
:08:33. > :08:38.single-handedly to give Israel back power. You feel vindicated now.
:08:38. > :08:48.tried to build a nuclear option in order to get peace and not to get
:08:48. > :08:49.
:08:49. > :08:59.bombs. I think I achieved that purpose. I think piece started
:08:59. > :09:09.
:09:09. > :09:19.because... I never thought. -- peace. There are enemies. They
:09:19. > :09:22.
:09:22. > :09:30.wanted to destroy us. In its 65 years, Israel has gone to
:09:30. > :09:39.war in every decade. It has done battle against Arab neighbours and
:09:39. > :09:49.Palestinians. Always insisting it acted in self-defence. Always
:09:49. > :09:51.
:09:51. > :09:59.accused of aggression and occupation.
:09:59. > :10:07.Two decades ago, the guns fell silent, at least for a moment.
:10:07. > :10:12.Trying to make peace became the best defence against war. What we are
:10:12. > :10:22.doing today, is more than signing an agreement, it is starting a
:10:22. > :10:27.
:10:27. > :10:37.revolution. Yesterday, I dream, today, a commitment. Israeli and
:10:37. > :10:38.
:10:38. > :10:43.Palestinian leaders put their signatures to the Oslo Accord. They
:10:43. > :10:53.had made a strategic shift even if it was still difficult to seal it
:10:53. > :10:56.
:10:56. > :11:06.with a handshake. After a shock hands with Arafat. -- after I
:11:06. > :11:06.
:11:06. > :11:16.shook. I looked at Arafat as a human being with his strength and
:11:16. > :11:26.weaknesses. As I permit myself my own weaknesses, we should permit
:11:26. > :11:26.
:11:26. > :11:36.others their weaknesses are. So they shook hands on the first deal. A
:11:36. > :11:43.
:11:43. > :11:49.year later, this historic deal inspired many. He also had a
:11:49. > :11:59.perspective related to Israel's Place in the region and in the
:11:59. > :12:09.community -- international community. A sufficient
:12:09. > :12:11.
:12:11. > :12:20.requirement... These are major achievements.
:12:20. > :12:28.In November 1995, two old rivals stood together again at a peace
:12:28. > :12:36.rally in Tel Aviv. The mood that night was euphoric. It was soon
:12:36. > :12:46.shattered by a shocking turn. He was murdered. Shot by an Israeli
:12:46. > :12:53.
:12:53. > :13:00.fanatic, against the Oslo deal. As a correspondent covering these
:13:00. > :13:07.events, I saw how the mood darkened dangerously. Israeli attacks on
:13:07. > :13:17.Palestinians hadn't stopped either. Anger was mounting a specially
:13:17. > :13:18.
:13:18. > :13:28.amongst right wing Israelis. As he found, when he visited the site of
:13:28. > :13:30.
:13:30. > :13:40.one of the blasts. I came to the place, there were 40 people killed.
:13:40. > :13:42.
:13:42. > :13:52.The halls were full of blood. There were thousands around. I came in,
:13:52. > :13:58.
:13:58. > :14:05.everyone started shouting, killer, murderer, look what you did to us.
:14:05. > :14:11.Now it's 20 years since Oslo. You never thought it was a mistake?
:14:11. > :14:21.Hundreds were killed because of Oslo. Without Oslo, thousands would
:14:21. > :14:22.
:14:22. > :14:29.have been killed. In fact it would have been worse, terrible.
:14:29. > :14:39.decades on, the two nations still haven't signed a final peace deal
:14:39. > :14:40.
:14:40. > :14:45.and the US is still trying to broker one. It is impossible to say how
:14:45. > :14:49.many times Shimon Peres has had these kind of meetings to try to
:14:49. > :14:54.move forward a troubled peace process. And the time has become an
:14:54. > :15:04.issue. Not just because Shimon Peres is now 90 years old, because they
:15:04. > :15:04.
:15:04. > :15:09.say time is running out for a genuine peace deal. For the
:15:09. > :15:19.Palestinians involved in this process, Shimon Peres is a
:15:19. > :15:23.
:15:23. > :15:30.formidable foe. This negotiating behaviour must stop, I said to him.
:15:31. > :15:35.He said to me negotiating and pain and frustration for five years is
:15:35. > :15:45.cheaper than exchanging bullets fired years. -- for five minutes. He
:15:45. > :15:55.was right. Do you think he wants peace? He wants peace.Do you think
:15:55. > :15:58.
:15:58. > :16:03.you could have done more to achieve this? His greatest mistake was to
:16:03. > :16:06.open up settlements. He thought he could have settlements and peace. I
:16:06. > :16:16.told him he cannot many times. The choice is between settlements or
:16:16. > :16:19.
:16:19. > :16:28.peace. Some of the first Jewish settlements on occupied land were
:16:28. > :16:30.built when someone is -- Shimon Peres was minister. Eight cost of
:16:30. > :16:37.caravans were selected on the West Bank by an ultranationalist
:16:37. > :16:42.religious movement. Some tried to stop the settlers, but Shimon Peres
:16:42. > :16:51.backed them against his rivals in the Cabinet. In part, before his own
:16:51. > :16:54.political gain. -- for his own political gain. Those who listen to
:16:54. > :16:59.you talking about peace expect you to be more critical of settlement
:16:59. > :17:09.building and they look back and they say that the first settlements were
:17:09. > :17:13.
:17:13. > :17:23.built on your watch. When my party lost, there were 22 settlements
:17:23. > :17:27.
:17:27. > :17:33.with, I think, 6000 people. That's what we built. When you compare the
:17:33. > :17:39.6000 to 350,000. The Palestinians say that you cannot discuss the land
:17:39. > :17:46.for a Palestinian state when they continued -- when these rivers
:17:46. > :17:56.continue to build settlements on it. The Palestinians agreed there would
:17:56. > :18:00.be three blocks. Jewish settlers on the West Bank remained. That was a
:18:00. > :18:10.proposal introduced by President Clinton. It was right and
:18:10. > :18:19.
:18:19. > :18:25.acceptable. In my experience, negotiation is the main thing to
:18:25. > :18:29.have new solutions. But the two state solution is regarded by many
:18:29. > :18:34.as being at risk by the pace of settlement building. And there are
:18:34. > :18:37.other major obstacles to a deal that demand painful compromises by
:18:38. > :18:46.Israeli and Palestinian leaders. In the end, it comes down to political
:18:46. > :18:51.will. And politics has been the life of Shimon Peres. Decades spent
:18:51. > :18:55.negotiating, manipulating, manoeuvring. Always at the centre of
:18:55. > :19:01.his political life. Three times Prime Minister, a dozen cabinet
:19:01. > :19:07.posts. I met in the first time when he was close to 70. He was then
:19:07. > :19:11.Foreign Minister. I thought that was the end of his career. But then he
:19:11. > :19:16.became Foreign Minister again, he became prime minister, and then he
:19:16. > :19:21.became president of the state of Israel. This is remarkable.
:19:21. > :19:25.showed an ability to keep bouncing back from lost collections. Moving
:19:25. > :19:28.across Israel's political spectrum, joining coalitions and shifting
:19:28. > :19:35.allegiances. For some, it is that determination to survive that
:19:35. > :19:39.defines him. The only political principle for him was Shimon Peres.
:19:39. > :19:43.That is the only principle. He has to be in power and he has to be
:19:43. > :19:47.where things are being held, where decisions are being held. When you
:19:47. > :19:53.look at his career, you do not see any political principle except the
:19:53. > :19:56.principle that he has to be there. What you say to your critics now
:19:56. > :20:03.that say that when you were a politician who were more interested
:20:03. > :20:11.in the position of the principles? would say it's normal to -- normal
:20:11. > :20:16.for people to criticise. But on the other hand, I am surprised for the
:20:16. > :20:26.support, not what people think. I have a rating of 80%. What does this
:20:26. > :20:36.mean? I have to say nothing. It didn't take any PR company to do it.
:20:36. > :20:37.
:20:37. > :20:40.I did it. I remain the same person. Shimon Peres has always styled
:20:40. > :20:47.himself as a man of vision, full of ideas and dreams for his young
:20:47. > :20:52.nation. Now it is the world of brain research, nanotechnology, technology
:20:52. > :20:58.of every kind has always captured his imagination. Even if he does not
:20:58. > :21:08.always bring everyone with him. Sometimes he makes mistakes and
:21:08. > :21:08.
:21:08. > :21:12.sometimes people laugh at him. But as a Sun bought it, it is enough for
:21:12. > :21:19.me that 10% of what my father is imagining added inventing will come
:21:19. > :21:24.true, and I'll be happy. Whatever you think about his politics and his
:21:24. > :21:29.ideas, there is no doubting his charisma. Even his critics succumb
:21:29. > :21:35.to his sense of humour, his sharp wit. A wordsmith able to make people
:21:35. > :21:41.laugh, even in the most trying of times. The first line he told me
:21:41. > :21:50.once when we were arguing, he said you can make omelettes out of eggs
:21:50. > :21:54.but you cannot make eggs out of omelettes. I asked him, is the light
:21:54. > :22:01.at the end of the tunnel? And he said yes there is, but there is no
:22:01. > :22:04.tunnel. Then there is the energy. The refusal to slow down, despite
:22:04. > :22:11.his advancing years. His hectic schedule often takes him up and down
:22:11. > :22:20.the country. Many ask you, what is the secret of your energy? What
:22:20. > :22:27.keeps you going? The secret of my energy is simple. I use it. People
:22:27. > :22:33.have too much pity about themselves, so they become lazy. If
:22:33. > :22:37.you try, you achieved many things. Your life is becoming meaningful.
:22:37. > :22:43.That is the greatest thing you can achieve in your life. The
:22:43. > :22:48.alternative is to be bored. A person who is bored as the person who is
:22:48. > :22:53.dead. I am never bored in my life. But despite all his drive and
:22:53. > :23:02.ambition, in the twilight of his career, one goal still eludes him.
:23:02. > :23:05.Peace. In his role as president, there is only so much you can do.
:23:05. > :23:13.Here's what we call the shields. He was the for the second Benjamin
:23:13. > :23:17.Netanyahu government. That is the guy who ensures -- assure us that
:23:17. > :23:22.the Americans and the Europeans that everything is working. Always
:23:23. > :23:28.reaching an agreement, just give them some time. And in a
:23:28. > :23:38.relationship with Prime Minister Netanyahu. Be sure that he shares
:23:38. > :23:40.your vision of the two state solution? For many years, the
:23:40. > :23:47.declaration that there was a distant solution is an ideological step
:23:47. > :23:57.forward. But he does not have the kind of cabinet that can make peace.
:23:57. > :24:05.Most are against that solution. Maybe I look upon it differently
:24:05. > :24:09.than his party, so what. I can do what I can do. There is no dictator
:24:09. > :24:19.in a democratic country. I cannot give orders. Many saying time is
:24:19. > :24:19.
:24:19. > :24:29.running out. Maybe. So, time is up. What to do? Time is out, we not out.
:24:29. > :24:30.
:24:30. > :24:35.Life is not out. So I have to continue and thrive. That is it.
:24:35. > :24:44.that surprised me. The would-be peacemaker who seems at peace with
:24:44. > :24:49.the prospect he may not achieve it. But perhaps, that is Shimon Peres.
:24:49. > :24:52.The philosopher who is first and foremost the ultimate pragmatist. As
:24:52. > :25:02.we walk through the grounds of his official residence, we find a
:25:02. > :25:06.
:25:06. > :25:12.fitting symbol. It has one trunk and to trees coming from the same trunk.
:25:12. > :25:18.You have a fig tree and an olive tree? That is a Shimon Peres tree.
:25:18. > :25:25.Two things in one. I am not to things. I am one thing in two
:25:25. > :25:29.different situations. Shimon Peres is a man had his time. As times
:25:29. > :25:39.change, so has he. Through the decades, he changed the course of
:25:39. > :25:41.