- 02/20/13 05:30 PM ET
John Kerry is meeting with the Palestinians' chief peace negotiator on Thursday for the first time since taking over as secretary of State.
Saeb Erekat will lead a delegation that's expected to urge Kerry to press President Obama to present his own peace initiative when he makes his first presidential visit to Israel and the West Bank next month, Israel's Haaretz reports. The White House has sought to downplay expectations ahead of Obama's trip, but the Palestinians are likely to press him for more engagement after sharply criticizing the administration's failure to revive the stalled peace process during Obama's first term.
“My understanding is these are consultations very much in keeping with the planning for the president’s trip,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.
The visit comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed renewed interest in peace talks following his conservative party's drubbing during recent elections. This week, he announced that former opposition leader and foreign minister Tzipi Livni would join his government and lead peace talks with the Palestinians.
Kerry has made reviving talks toward a two-state solution an early priority of his term in office, calling both Netanyahu and the Palestinian Authority's Mahmoud Abbas the weekend before he took office. Negotiations have been on ice for the past three years because of disagreements surrounding Israeli settlement activity and the borders of a future Palestinian state.
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