国际英语新闻:Tough political decisions needed in "challenging" Mideast talks: Obama

WASHINGTON, March 17 (Xinhua) -- It will require "tough" political decisions and risks to achieve peace in "challenging" Israeli-Palestinian talks, U.S. President Barack Obama told visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday.

"I believe that now is the time for not just the leaders of both sides but also the peoples of both sides to embrace this opportunity for peace," Obama said before a meeting with Abbas at the White House.

Israel and Palestine resumed peace talks last July after a three-year halt. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had aimed for a deal on all the final-status issues -- security, border, the state of Jerusalem and refugees, within nine months.

However, no visible progress has been made so far in the talks, and Kerry said in late February that they will likely proceed beyond the original deadline of April.

Two weeks ago, in a similar meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Obama urged him to make some "tough" decisions in order to move forward on peace talks.

On Monday, Obama acknowledged that with the deadline approaching, the task ahead is very "hard" and "challenging."

"This is obviously an elusive goal," Obama told Abbas in the Oval Office. "But we remain convinced that there is an opportunity. "

The United States is now seeking to get both sides to sign a framework that would serve as a guide for negotiations on a permanent solution to the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians.

Obama said everybody understands what the outlines of a peace deal would look like, adding that it would "involve a territorial compromise on both sides based on '67 lines with mutually agreed upon swaps."

He praised Abbas as a leader who "consistently renounced violence" and "sought a diplomatic and peaceful solution that allows for two states, side by side, in peace and security."

Abbas said Palestine is working for a solution "based on international legitimacy and also the 1967 borders."

The Palestinian leader did not directly address Netanyahu's demand to explicitly recognize Israel as a Jewish state, but he reiterated that Palestinians have since 1988 recognized the legitimacy of Israel and "the state of Israel" in 1993.

Abbas also expressed the hope that Israel would release the fourth batch of prisoners by March 29, which, he said "will give a very solid impression about the seriousness of these efforts to achieve peace."

"We don't have any time to waste. Time is not on our side, especially given the very difficult situation that the Middle East is experiencing and the entire region is facing," Abbas added.