CAIRO, Nov. 15 (UPI) -- Egypt expressed support for a Palestinian national unity government which it urged to have a different agenda than the existing Hamas-led Cabinet.
Egyptian presidential spokesman Suleiman Awwad told reporters after a meeting between President Hosni Mubarak and Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas in Cairo Wednesday "the government of national unity should reflect the stances of the various Palestinian factions at home and in the diaspora."
Awwad stressed that if the aspired government "will reject what has been already refuted by the Hamas government," consultations to form a national unity administration will be futile and pointless.
Awwad said Mubarak has called on the Palestinians "to speak with one voice," stressing that "balanced positions and a unified rhetoric" are the best guarantee for placing peace efforts on the right track.
For his part, Abbas said the aspired Palestinian government "will have a new agenda" that will be committed to agreements signed with Israel by previous governments.
In the meantime, the Quartet Committee -- comprising the United States, United Nations, the European Union and Russia -- met in Cairo to discuss possibilities of reviving Arab-Israeli peace negotiations which have been frozen for more than six years.
It is the first time the Quartet Committee, which drafted the "road map" that envisions the existence of two states, Israel and Palestine, meets after Hamas had formed the government following its landslide victory in last January's general elections.
