SECOND TRY
After Obama came into office in 2009, he asked Israel to impose a ten-month halt to settlement construction on the West Bank so that a climate of trust could be established between Israelis and Palestinians.
Israel did comply with Obama's request, although some say Israel did make liberal interpretations of the guidelines of the freeze. However, it was not until the last month of the period that the two sides met for talks, and instead of focusing on the issues on the ground, the negotiations dealt with the order in which the issues on the ground should be negotiated.
The freeze then ended and Israel resumed construction in the settlements, leading Abbas to refuse to go on negotiations until Israel renews the freeze, which Israel has opposed to do.
Therefore, Obama needs to find a way either to convince Israel to renew or to get Abbas to agree to negotiate despite the fact that settlement construction is ongoing, something that results in him closing most of the very little confidence that the Palestinians people have in him.
Despite admitting that the talks could still be fragile even if Obama could clear all the obstacles, Brom said "I hope that they will check the possibility of reaching an agreement which is less than a permanent status agreement to keep the momentum and to keep the option of a negotiated solution alive and to start moving towards this option."
Most feared Spring Festival questions
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