Since the Islamist group Hamas came to power in Palestine, Western nations have blocked aid to the Palestinian government over its refusal to recognize Israel's right to exist, give up violence and comply with previous Palestinian-Israeli agreements seeking a solution to the protracted Middle East crisis.
The Wednesday meeting of the Quartet in Berlin did not change Washington's position on those issues, just as with the previous meeting in Washington in early February, and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice once again expressed Washington's concerns over a government that includes the militant Hamas party.
She questioned how it was possible to speak of peace when one side did not recognize the other side's right to exist, referring to Hamas' refusal to recognize Israel, and stressed once again the U.S. position that any Palestinian government must recognize Israel to obtain its support.
The greatest obstacle to the peace process, Rice said, was the lack of a fully formed national unity government in Palestine, although progress was made earlier in the month between the country's two conflicting parties.
Palestine was on the brink of civil war as the country found itself torn between the Fatah movement, led by President Mahmoud Abbas, and the Islamist group Hamas, which won parliamentary elections in January 2006 and is regarded by the U.S. and Israel as a terrorist organization.
At a February 8 meeting in Mecca, Hamas and Fatah reached an agreement on the structure of a new power-sharing Cabinet. Although the agreement ended weeks of fighting between the opposing groups, in which over 90 people died on the both sides, Hamas still refuses to recognize Israel and renounce violence, both preconditions for the resumption of international aid.
Russia, which has also called on Palestine to recognize Israel and give up violence, has been pushing for the Quartet to recognize the Palestinian coalition deal reached in Mecca, and has taken a softer stance on Hamas, unlike the United States.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said it was wrong to assume that the Palestinian government has been boycotted, and urged the formation of a permanent mechanism to aid the government.
"I believe it is completely wrong to speak of a boycott," Lavrov said.
The Quartet, which comprises the United States, Russia, the UN and EU, reached no breakthrough deals at the meeting, and agreed to meet again in a Middle East country, without specifying which.
The meeting in Berlin followed U.S.-sponsored three-way talks between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Condoleezza Rice in West Jerusalem February 19.
Rice reported to the Quartet on the results of the meeting, saying that the Israeli and Palestinian leaders agreed to meet again and possibly hold similar meetings regularly in the future.
Russia has been actively assisting the resolution of the Mideast conflict and has given its support to the agreement in Mecca, which was also discussed during Abbas' meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this month in Amman, Jordan.
Putin told Abbas that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict could be resolved by observing the Mecca agreement and by returning an Israeli soldier captured by the Palestinians in June to exchange him for Palestinian prisoners in Israel. Hamas was one of the groups that claimed responsibility for the abduction.
