UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 18 (UPI) -- Officials from the European Union, Russia, the United Nations and the United States will meet Feb. 2 for a Middle East diplomatic Quartet meeting.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will attend the Washington meeting, U.N. Spokeswoman Michele Montas told reporters Thursday at U.N. World Headquarters in New York.
After returning Wednesday from meetings in Washington with U.S. President George W. Bush and congressional leaders, Ban said he and the president discussed a meeting of the Quartet.
"I emphasized the importance of re-energizing the Quartet meeting to facilitate the peace process in the Middle East. I have been discussing this matter with Secretary (of State Condoleezza) Rice, and it is my hope that we will be able to have a Quartet meeting as soon as possible, preferably early February," he said.
Also, at a news conference on Wednesday in Berlin, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said a meeting would be held early in February.
