UN official: Solutions can still be found to Middle East issues

A UN official on Tuesday said although twenty years of "endless negotiations" have passed since the signing of the Oslo peace accord between Palestinians and Israelis, "fair" solutions can still be found to solve the issues dividing the two parties. UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Robert Serry told the Security Council during its monthly meeting on the Middle East that "twenty years of endless negotiations, prolonged occupation, terror and conflict have deeply affected perceptions and expectations and undermined the belief that peace is possible". "Yet, twenty years of peace efforts have also demonstrated that fair, reasonable and legitimate solutions can be found for the key issues dividing the parties," he added. He put the onus on the negotiators to identify and narrow these gaps, and called on their leaders to take decisions in the best interest of their peoples. He expressed hope that the Quartet principles UN, US, EU and Russia will hold a "productive" meeting here later this month, and that the Palestinian and Israeli leaders take the opportunity, when they address the General Assemblys 68th session next week, to "reach out to each others people in making the case for peace".