Obama Calls on UN To Support Middle East Peace Talks

Barack Obama has challenged the countries of the United Nations to unite around peace efforts to create an independent Palestine and a secure Israel – within a year. In a speech to the UN general assembly, the US president urged fellow world leaders to press forward with renewed determination in the quest for peace in the Middle East. Without an agreement, Obama said, "more blood will be shed", and "this Holy Land will remain a symbol of our differences, instead of our common humanity".

Israel did not have a representative in the hall, owing to the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, but the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, listened to the speech through a translator. Obama's call for a Palestinian state drew a burst of applause from throughout the hall.
Abbas has threatened to walk out of the latest round of talks if Israel does not extend a moratorium on the construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, a moratorium that is set to expire next week. The Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, has said he will not extend the freeze.

Obama repeated the White House position that the settlement moratorium should be extended. "It has made a difference on the ground and improved the atmosphere for talks," he said. Faced with the possibility of the collapse of negotiations, Obama implored the international community to get behind the idea of peace, and forget favouritism.

"Those of us who are friends of Israel must understand that true security for the Jewish state requires an independent Palestine," he said. "And those of us who are friends of the Palestinians must understand that the rights of the Palestinian people will be won only through peaceful means – including genuine reconciliation with a secure Israel."Obama also called for the promotion of human rights, open government and democracy.He defended his administration's approach to engaging Iran in negotiations over its nuclear programme. "The door remains open to diplomacy should Iran choose to walk through it," he said. "But the Iranian government must demonstrate a clear and credible commitment and confirm to the world the peaceful intent of its nuclear programme."