EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said on Thursday the Palestinians’ announcement that they were ending informal talks with Israel does not mean the two sides have reached an “impasse.” “I do not think there is an impasse. I know that president (Mahmud) Abbas is thinking carefully about how to move forward. For him the meeting of the Arab (League) Follow Up Committee in Cairo is extremely important,” Ashton told reporters after meeting with Abbas in Amman. “I know he is hoping that Israel will recognise that gestures can make a difference. But meeting with him and meeting with the Israelis I still remain hopeful that with good will they can continue to talk, so not a dead end but certainly there needs to be momentum.”The outcome of Ashton’s talks with Abbas was not immediately clear.
But it was expected to be a last-ditch attempt to persuade the Palestinians not to abandon a series of exploratory talks with Israel over the possibility of renewing direct negotiations. The meeting took place as a deadline for Israel and the Palestinians to submit proposals on borders and security, which the Middle East Quartet of diplomatic peacemakers had set three months ago, expires on Thursday. “The question for this particular phase of very informal discussions is how to inspire confidence in the process in both directions, and I think that is what is being discussed,” said Ashton, who also met with Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh. Palestinian and Israeli negotiators met late on Wednesday in Amman for their fifth meeting in just over three weeks, after which the Palestinians ruled out any further talks.
