ROME (AA) - Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino and her Palestinian counterpart Riad Al-Malki said Wednesday they agreed on supporting the mediation initiative by the US Secretary of State John Kerry regarding the Middle East peace process.
As part of his Italy visit, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Al-Malki held an official meeting with his Italian counterpart Bonino in Rome.
Following the closed meeting, Italian Foreign Ministry issued a written statement saying the meeting discussed the developments regarding a US initiative to revitalize the Middle East peace talks, Italian support for the Palestinian institution-building process, and bilateral relations.
The statement said Italian FM Bonino observed that Prime Minister Letta’s forthcoming visit to the region is “highly significant” in view of the meetings he will have with the President of the Palestinian National Authority, Mohmoud Abbas, and the Quartet Representative Tony Blair.
"The two ministers agreed to provide full support to the mediation initiative by the US Secretary of State Kerry, designed to give new impetus to the Peace Process. Minister Bonino reiterated Italy’s support for the two-state solution and encouraged Malki to grasp the opportunity presented by Washington’s initiative by engaging in direct negotiations with Israel," the statement underlined.
The statement said that Palestinian FM Malki illustrated an outlook for Palestinian reconciliation and offered his views on the Syria crisis while Italy's Bonino shared with her impressions from her meetings yesterday with the Jordanian authorities.
The statement also noted that the two ministers discussed, at the bilateral level, the preparations for the Joint Steering Committee due to take place before the end of the year in Ramallah, the Italian contribution to the security missions (EUPOL COPPS in Ramallah, TIPH in Hebron and EUBAM in Rafah), training for Palestinian security units; and Development Cooperation (30 million euros for the PNA budget).
