Abbas, Olmert hold new round of Mideast peace talks

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2008

JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas Sunday for US-backed peace talks in what could be their last meeting before Olmert steps down over a graft scandal.

"The objective remains to press ahead with the process begun at the Annapolis conference in the United States last November and to try to conclude a historic Israeli-Palestinian agreement," Olmert's spokesman Mark Regev said.

They were joined by their top negotiators, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Palestinian diplomat Ahmed Qorei, who have met regularly since the peace process was formally relaunched under US auspices nine months ago.

The talks have made little visible progress since then and were dealt a blow in July when Olmert announced he...