Thursday, August 20, 2009

MIDEAST: OBAMA PEACE PLAN, PERES SUGGESTS 3 MEMBER SUMMIT




(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, AUGUST 19 - Israeli President, Shimon Peres, does not exclude that the presentation of the new American peace plan for the Middle East, announced for September yesterday, could end with a three member summit with the US President, Barack Obama, the Israeli Premier, Benyamin Netanyahu, and the president of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), Mahmud Abbas (Abu Mazen). ''The parties are ready'' for restarting ''real dialogue'', said Peres from Russia, where he is currently on a visit, according to the Israeli media. He added that he has had the occasion to meet with various Arab representatives recently and to be ''very encouraged by what he has heard'' from them. The prospect of a new peace plan was announced yesterday from Washington during a meeting between Obama and the Egyptian leader, Hosni Mubarack, during which the president of the United States mentioned steps forward by Israel on the difficult question of ending Jewish settlements in the Palestinian Territories, solicited by the White House as a premise for re-launching the negotiation process.(ANSAmed).