Quartet pledges to restart Middle East talks

Diplomats representing the Middle East Quartet - the United States, European Union, United Nations and Russia - have agreed to encourage the Palestinians and Israel to return to direct talks.

After discussions in Brussels on Sunday, Catherine Ashton, the EU foreign policy chief, said the Quartet will invite both sides to a meeting in the coming days.

The Quartet tried unsuccessfully to kick start negotiations during talks on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on September 23, when a fresh Quartet initiative called for the resumption of direct peace talks within a month and a commitment to sealing a deal by the end of 2012.

Israel subsequently called for an immediate return to peace talks under the framework of that proposal - a statement welcomed by the United States.   Continue

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