Leaders call for Mideast peace ahead of direct talks
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Abbas said that a Middle East peace agreement can be achieved within a year.
![Palestinian National Authority (PNA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (L) speaks during a press conference about the Middle East peace talks as U.S. President Obama looks on at the East Room of the White House in Washington D.C., capital of the United States, Sept. 1, 2010. [Zhang Jun/Xinhua]](http://images.china.cn/attachement/jpg/site1007/20100902/000cf1bdd03f0de97d3208.jpg "Palestinian National Authority (PNA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (L) speaks during a press conference about the Middle East peace talks as U.S. President Obama looks on at the East Room of the White House in Washington D.C., capital of the United States, Sept. 1, 2010. [Zhang Jun/Xinhua]") |
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Palestinian National Authority (PNA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (L) speaks during a press conference about the Middle East peace talks as U.S. President Obama looks on at the East Room of the White House in Washington D.C., capital of the United States, Sept. 1, 2010. [Zhang Jun/Xinhua] |
Now it is time to made peace, end Israeli occupation and establish an independent Palestinian state, said Abbas.
He condemned the violence that killed four Israelis in the West Bank on Tuesday and urged Israel to stop settlement activities in the West Bank.
Earlier in the day, after holding bilateral meetings with the four other leaders, Obama said that the United States is ready to seek a lasting peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.
Obama, making the statement in Rose Garden at the White House, said that direct talks are the "only path to lasting peace" in the Middle East.
He said that the Middle East peace talks should help solve all final status issues and lead to a Palestinian state.
Since he took office, Obama has made the Middle East peace process one of his top diplomatic priorities and spared no effort to bring Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiation table.
Despite their small sizes, Israel and Palestinian areas have important implication on U.S. overall strategy in the region. President Obama and Secretary Hillary Clinton have both said solving the conflict between the two sides concerns the national interests of the U.S.
Abbas and Netanyahu are scheduled to launch direct peace talks in Washington on Thursday, ending a 20-month hiatus of such contacts between the two sides.
