Obama thanks Abbas for help with truce

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WASHINGTON, March 19 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama Monday thanked Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas for helping end the recent fighting between Palestinians and Israel.

The White House issued a statement saying Obama called the Palestinian Authority president "to discuss a range of issues of mutual interest."

"The president reaffirmed America's commitment to Middle East peace and to the overall objectives outlined by the Quartet," the readout stated, referring to efforts by the United States, Russia, the United Nations and the European Union to help the two sides reach a two-state solution.

"The president also noted the need for all parties to reinforce the efforts that have brought an end to the recent fighting and thanked President Abbas for his contributions in that regard.

"The two leaders agreed on the necessity of the two-state solution, and President Obama noted that Jordan's efforts to foster direct discussions between Israel and the Palestinians are an important contribution to the cause of peace."

The statement said the two leaders discussed the "need to build trust between the parties and for all sides to refrain from provocative actions that make it more difficult to build such trust."