BICOM

Days before US Secretary of State John Kerry is set to visit the region, media reports suggest that progress may have been achieved in attempts to kick-start direct talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders.

Kerry is expected to arrive on Thursday in what will be his fifth visit to Israel and the Palestinian areas of the West Bank since March, as he continues to make concerted efforts to re-start peace talks. While Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly called for Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas to begin talks immediately without pre-conditions. Abbas has insisted that Israel must first all settlement construction, agree to 1967 borders plus swaps and release pre-Oslo prisoners.

However, reports on both Channel Two and Channel Ten yesterday evening suggested that following pressure from Kerry, Abbas is now willing to talk with Netanyahu for a limited amount of time in order to assess the seriousness of Netanyahu’s intentions. According to Channel Two, Abbas will take unilateral action at the United Nations if he believes that Netanyahu has not presented a serious proposal during such talks. However, the PA has not made any official comment on the media suggestions. Israel Hayom this morning reports Israeli concerns that even if Abbas does agree to return to the negotiating table, he will derail talks at the first possible opportunity.

Meanwhile, Maariv says that Netanyahu is prepared to agree to the release of a certain number of Palestinian security prisoners and announce a construction freeze in isolated West Bank settlements, as so-called good will gestures to encourage Abbas to agree to talks. The Prime Minister’s Office did not comment on the story, which claims that Israeli authorities are already compiling a list of possible prisoners to release.

In a related development, European Union foreign ministers yesterday pledged support for Kerry’s efforts following a meeting in Luxembourg.