Middle East peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians will officially resume in the next two weeks, Secretary of State John Kerry announced on Tuesday at the State Department with negotiators from both sides, CBS News reported.
"The times has come for a lasting peace. We all appreciate- believe me- we appreciate the challenges ahead," Secretary Kerry said.
The Israelis and Palestinians "can make peace for one simple reason: because they must. A viable two-state solution is the only way this conflict can end, and there is not much time to achieve it, and there is no other alternative," he added.
The State Department hosted negotiators on Monday evening, having a meal to mark the breaking of the day-long fast observed during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
"It was our first meeting during this process that you said to me that failure is not an option," Israeli Justice Minister Tzipi Livni said.
"You proved today that failure is not an option and this is the man, Secretary Kerry, who showed everyone that nothing can stop true believers. We all know it's not going to be easy," she said. "But I can assure in these negotiations it's not our intention to argue about the past but to create solutions and make decisions for the future."
"Palestinians have suffered enough, and no one benefits more from the success of this endeavor more than Palestinians," Erekat said, adding that he is "delighted all final status issues are on the table and will be resolved without any exceptions. It's time for the Palestinians to have a sovereign independent state of their own."
Protesters in Ramallah called the planned talks "deeply dangerous to the Palestinian national cause,"
The Middle East peace process between Israelis and Palestinians have been attempted by previous administrations with little to no tangible results.
Nonetheless, both the Israelis and Palestinian officials have agreed to keep the progress of negotiations confidential, Kerry added as he would be the only one authorized to comment publicly on the talks, news reports said.
Livni surmised the impending peace talks by saying, 'We are hopeful but we cannot be naïve. We cannot afford it in our region," she said, adding that "we all know that it's not going to be easy. It's going to be hard, with ups and downs... History is made by cynics. It is made by realists."
Livni and Erekat thanked Secretary Kerry and President Obama for helping to regenerate the peace talks.
