The Middle East diplomatic Quartet on Tuesday called for Israel to continue its partial freeze on settlement building in the West Bank, which is set to expire at the end of the month. In a statement issued after a meeting at U.N. headquarters in New York City, the Quartet called on Israel to take “further steps to facilitate Palestinian state-building and economic growth.” The diplomatic group is comprised of the United Nations, the United States, the European Union, and Russia. It also called on Israel to take “further steps to facilitate Palestinian state-building and economic growth.” The Quartet urged Arab states to take “bolder steps” to foster peace between the two sides. “In the spirit of the Arab Peace Initiative, the Quartet called on Arab states to support Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and progress on the other tracks by taking bolder steps to foster positive relations throughout the region and to combat violence and extremism,” the statement said. After their meeting, the Quartet members were scheduled to meet with the Arab League's Arab Peace Initiative follow-up committee.
