Abbas-Trump Talks Constructive, Cautious About Making Forecasts - Palestine

RAMALLAH (Sputnik) — The conversation between US President Donald Trump and his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas Saeb Erekat was positive as Trump reaffirmed his commitment to peace in the Middle East, but it is too early to make any predictions about the future, the secretary general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) told Sputnik on Monday.

The two leaders had a telephone conversation on Friday and, according to the White House, Trump stressed Washington's willingness to work closely with both Palestinian and Israeli leadership to make a peace deal possible.

"The talks with US President Trump was positive, as the president affirmed his commitment to peace… and invited President Abbas to visit the White House, to visit him to achieve that goal," Saeb Erekat said.

Erekat noted that Palestinian people stand to gain the most from the peaceful resolution of the Middle Eastern conflict and to lose the most from failure to do so.

"I cannot speak for the US president, but we, as the Palestinian side and the Arab side, are doing all we can to stop the occupation and create a Palestinian state," Erekat said.

Erekat refrained from any forecasts on Abbas' visit and the resumption of the negotiations.

"All these issues will be discussed and we will see what the result will be. We do not want to get ahead of ourselves," the official said.

Erekat added that Trump's Israeli envoy on the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians Jason Greenblatt will come to Ramallah on Tuesday to prepare Abbas' visit.

Palestinians seek diplomatic recognition for their independent state on the territories of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, which is partially occupied by Israel, and the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.