Secretary Kerry and Palestinian President Abbas meet to discuss Mideast peace

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was scheduled to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on Friday evening to discuss the ongoing Mideast peace negotiations.

Prior to their meeting on Friday, a senior State Department official told reporters that Abbas, like Netanyahu, had demonstrated his commitment to achieving peace and securing a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Acknowledging that "We're not expecting a breakthrough on this trip," the official emphasized, "There's a lot of work that lies ahead of getting the parties to a point where they're agree on this framework. It's going to be an intensive engagement."

Kerry met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday in Jerusalem. Speaking to reporters before their meeting, Kerry said:

The possibilities provided by peace are dramatic and they are worth struggling for: Two states for two peoples living side-by-side in peace and stability and security. Peace is possible today, I believe, because the leaders -- Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas -- have both each taken significant steps for peace notwithstanding the difficulties that the Prime Minister has cited -- and they are real. But still we are on this track, and I believe that they are both willing to take more.

[State Department] [UPI]