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Netanyahu reportedly wants Peres to remain president until 2015

JERUSALEM, Feb. 19 (UPI) -- Israeli President Shimon Peres said Wednesday he would oppose any move to extend his term by a year.

The president's office released a statement after Israel's Army Radio said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu wants to keep Peres in office until 2015, the Jerusalem Post reported. Peres, who at 90 is the world's oldest head of state, was elected to a seven-year term by the Knesset or parliament in 2007.

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The radio report said Netanyahu also wants to switch to choosing the president by popular vote. The position is mostly ceremonial.

The Post said Netanyahu may want to delay the vote because he does not like any of the currently likely candidates. But the newspaper said Peres has other plans, wanting to devote himself to the Peres Center for Peace and to visiting some of the many countries that have extended invitations once he leaves the presidency.

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