Israeli settlements are expected to be high on the agenda as Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas prepares for White House talks with President Obama.

A spokesman for Mr Abbas says he will be seeking more US pressure on Israel to stop settlement activity on the occupied West Bank.

Israel has insisted it will allow existing settlements to expand.

President Obama’s meeting with Mr Abbas is the third of four key sessions aimed at reinvigorating the peace process.

He has already held talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Mr Obama plans to meet Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo on 4 June.

“We expect an active participation on the part of the United States that will translate into US pressure on Israel to stop its settlement activity and its provocations, and accept a two-state solution,” said Nabil Abu Rudeina, a spokesman for Mr Abbas, prior to Thursday’s talks.

Two-state solution

Earlier, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Washington was pushing for a two-state solution in the Middle East as it was in the “best interests” of both the Palestinians and Israelis.

WEST BANK SETTLEMENTS Construction of settlements began in 1967, shortly after the Six Day War Some 280,000 Israelis now live in the 121 officially-recognised settlements in the West Bank A further 190,000 Israelis live in settlements in Palestinian East Jerusalem The largest West Bank settlement is Ma’ale Adumim, where more than 30,000 people were living in 2005 There are a further 102 unauthorised outposts in the West Bank which are not officially recognised by Israel The population of West Bank settlements has been growing at a rate of 5-6% since 2001 Source: Peace Now

Speaking after a dinner with Mr Abbas, she said: “We believe strongly in a two-state solution.”

However, Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said on Thursday that Israel would continue to allow some construction in West Bank settlements despite US calls for a freeze on its work.

He said the fate of the settlements should be decided in peace talks with the Palestinians.

When Mr Netanyahu visited Washington, President Obama urged him to accept a Palestinian state.

He also told him that Israel had an obligation under the 2003 “roadmap” peace plan to stop Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

Mr Netanyahu later said no new settlements would be built but natural growth in existing settlements should be allowed.

Analysts say the thorny issue will be one of the key topics in Mr Abbas’s talks at the White House.

However, the BBC’s Kim Ghattas in Washington says Mr Abbas is the leader of a divided people with political authority over only part of the Palestinian territories.

With Hamas in control of Gaza, many are wondering whether there is any point in starting peace talks with Mr Abbas if there are no guarantees he can bring all the Palestinians on board, our correspondent says.

Source: BBC

May 28th, 2009