CAIRO, March 21 (NNN-KUNA) — Egypt on Saturday welcomed positive points enclosed in the statement of Middle East Quartet, after the latter’s meeting last Friday.
The Quartet; the US, the UN, the EU, and Russia, held their meeting yesterday in the Russian capital Moscow.
In a press release, Egyptian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hussam Zaki, said the statement “clearly” condemned Israel’s new settlement plans, as well as it indicated the Quartet’s intention to closely monitor the situation in Jerusalem, and foremost, it stressed on not to recognize Israel’s decision to include East Jerusalem to its territories.
Commending the Quartet’s support for Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s endeavor to establish a Palestinian state, the statement also lauded the Quartet for supporting a timeframe of 24 months to achieve settlement between Israel and Palestinians, as well as calling on the Israeli government to halt all settlement-related activities.
Zaki said that despite all positive indicators, the Quartet could have adopted a sturdier stance regarding East Jerusalem’s status as a capital for an anticipated Palestinian state.
He also criticized the statement’s overlooking of Israel’s commitment towards the Roadmap.
The Quartet’s meeting brought together US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, US Middle East Envoy George Mitchell, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, EU Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The Quartet team was joined by their Middle East Envoy former UK prime minister Tony Blair.– NNN-KUNA 
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