国际英语新闻：Palestinians receive U.S. approval of proposal of reference for direct talks with Israel

The proposal was one of three proposals the Palestinians had presented to the United States in order to launch direct peace talks with Israel. Washington rebuffed two proposals and promised to consider the one related to the Quartet.

The first proposal is that U.S. President Barack Obama issues a statement that defines a reference for the direct peace talks with Israel, including guarantees, and the second proposal is to hold a three-way meeting that includes senior Israeli, Palestinian and U. S. officials. The two proposals were rejected.

Meanwhile, Yasser Abed Rabbo, PLO executive committee secretary general, had earlier on Wednesday told "voice of Palestine" Radio in an interview that the Palestinians are in favor of the proposal that the international Quartet defines a reference for the direct peace talks with Israel.

"In case the Quartet defines the reference for the direct peace talks with Israel, it will be an observer that will treat the issues which are related to the references of the peace process and setting up a time schedule for the negotiations including the cessation of settlement," said Abed Rabbo.

The Palestinians hope that the statement of the Quartet Committee, which was issued on March 19 and called for holding talks based on halting settlement, implementing the international resolutions and on the principle of the two-state solution, would be considered by both Israel and the United States.