U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Friday that now it is time for Israel and the Palestinians to "grapple with core issues" of their conflict.

Clinton made the remarks in her speech at a forum held by the Washington-based think tank, Brookings Institution.

She said the core issues to be discussed include border, security, refugee, settlements and Jerusalem.

Despite the U.S. failure to push Israel to extend the moratorium on West Bank settlement activities, Clinton vowed that the United States will continue to push forward the Middle East peace process and be committed to the two-state solution to the decades-long conflict between Palestinians and Israelis.