RAMALLAH, West Bank - US envoy George Mitchell met Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Wednesday and reiterated that a Palestinian state is the only viable answer to the Middle East conflict.
"The president of the United States (Barack Obama) and Secretary of State (Hillary Clinton) have made our policy clear -- the only viable resolution to this conflict is for the aspirations of both sides to be met through two states," Mitchell told reporters after the meeting in Ramallah.
"As President Obama said last week, America will not turn... (its) back on the legitimate Palestinian aspiration for dignity, opportunity and a state of their own," he said of Obama's address to the Muslim world.
The US envoy also reiterated statements he made the previous day in meetings with Israeli leaders that Washington was seeking "conditions for the prompt resumption and early conclusion of negotiations."
And he said that both Israelis and Palestinians have obligations under the 2003 international "roadmap" peace plan that among other things demands that the Palestinians halt violence and Israel stop settlement activity.
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat called Abbas's meeting with Mitchell "positive," saying the "emphasis on both parties needing to implement their respective obligations under the roadmap is an important litmus test of fairness and balance in America’s approach to Middle East peace."
Erakat criticised Israel for failing to meet its roadmap obligation to freeze settlement activity in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Earlier, Mitchell met Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad.
Tensions have jumped to levels unseen in nearly two decades as Obama's administration has repeatedly called for a complete halt to Israeli settlement activity and said the creation of a Palestinian state is the only "viable" solution to the conflict.
Washington's blunt talk has raised fears in Israel that its main ally may reduce its support for Tel Aviv.
Obama's administration has repeatedly called for a complete halt to all settlement activity, including building to accommodate population growth.
In Cairo, an Egyptian foreign ministry source said Mitchell would meet Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit and intelligence chief Omar Suleiman later on Wednesday to brief them on his talks with the Israeli and Palestinian leaders.
Mitchell is due in Beirut on Thursday and Damascus on Friday and Saturday in what will be his first trip to Syria.
EU envoy urges Israel PM to commit to Palestinian state
Visiting EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana on Thursday urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to commit to a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict.
"I would like to hear a speech in which there's a commitment of the government to the two-state solution, a commitment of the government on the question of settlements and a commitment to re-initiate relations with the Palestinians," Solana told journalists.
"This is what we expect to hear and I am sure that we will hear something of that nature," said Solana, who is due to meet Netanyahu later Thursday.
Hardline Netanyahu, who has refused to publicly accept a two-state solution, is due to outline his government's policies on the peace process at a speech on Sunday.
Solana is also due to hold talks with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Thursday.
Churches urge 'resistance' to Israeli settlements