Kerry and Abbas hold surprise meet in Riyadh to discuss Israeli-Palestinian talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Jack Khoury, Barak Ravid - March 4, 2013 - 1:00am U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met for unplanned talks on Monday afternoon, as part of their coinciding visits to Saudi Arabia. Abbas' own trip to the capital Riyadh to meet King Abdullah was unexpected, and may have been coordinated to overlap with Kerry's. The lunch meeting, which was added to Kerry's schedule at the last-minute on Monday morning, focused on efforts to resume the diplomatic process between Israel and the Palestinians and on U.S. President Barack Obama's upcoming visit to the region. » Read more

Things you can't see from DC ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Giora Eiland - (Opinion) March 4, 2013 - 1:00am US President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry are expected to visit the region together in late March to try and promote an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. It is amazing to see how American policy has not changed in 20 years. Each administration creates expectations regarding a solution to the conflict without reassessing it and asking the basic question: Why have the peace efforts failed so far?   » Read more

Palestinian finance minister quits in budget dispute ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Nidal al-Mughrabi - March 3, 2013 - 1:00am Palestinian Finance Minister Nabil Qassis announced his resignation on Sunday, saying the government had failed to address a gaping budget deficit. "No decision has been taken to lower the deficit substantially, and on the contrary it is growing ahead of ratifying the (2013) budget," Qassis said in comments to al-Ayyam newspaper explaining his reasons for quitting. Prime Minister Salam Fayyad told cabinet members he had accepted Qassis's resignation. » Read more

Can Obama make a substantive contribution to peace? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Larry Snider - (Opinion) March 3, 2013 - 1:00am There are countless traps laid out like a mine field awaiting the return of Barack Obama to substantive engagement in the peace process that will commence with his upcoming visit to Jerusalem, Ramallah and Amman. Peace and the search for peace have failed presidents, prime ministers, diplomats, pundits and activists of every conceivable stripe. What can change in 2013 to make peace achievable? » Read more

Barak: Consider unilateral separation from West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) March 4, 2013 - 1:00am  Israel should consider unilateral steps to separate itself from the Palestinians should peace talks fail, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said. Such steps would include dismantling settlements beyond the separation barrier and maintaining a military presence in the Jordan Valley along the West Bank-Jordan border, Barak said Sunday at the annual American Israel Public Affairs Committee policy conference in Washington. "We should consider unilateral steps in order to place a wedge on this extremely dangerous slippery slope to a binational state," he said. » Read more

New Israeli coalition will have to freeze construction outside settlement blocs, Netanyahu's aides say ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - March 3, 2013 - 1:00am Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu received 14 more days to form a new government Saturday, but his efforts to form a coalition seemed likely to be complicated by the likelihood of a new settlement construction freeze to improve Israel's inter » Read more

Winners in Israel's game-changing election unlikely to lead charge for peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - March 1, 2013 - 1:00am Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is still without a coalition more than a month after winning parliamentary elections, but amid the political horsetrading the next government's agenda is coming into view. » Read more

AIPAC and American Jews: Be proud of Jewish power ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Eric H. Yoffie - (Opinion) March 4, 2013 - 1:00am American Jews have a complex about power, and they need to get over it. The simple fact is that power – or more precisely, influence - is a good thing. To the extent that Jewish Americans have influence, they should nurture it and use it responsibly. But they should never minimize it, apologize for it, or be squeamish about it. And they should avoid the trap of thinking that the exercise of influence in our political system is contrary to some abstract notion of American interests; it is not. » Read more

Israeli Premier Gets Extension to Form a Coalition but Faces Turmoil ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - March 2, 2013 - 1:00am Israel’s president on Saturday granted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a two-week extension to form a governing coalition, a task complicated by mathematics and chemistry. » Read more

Israel opens Palestinians-only bus lines in W. Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Jeffrey Heller - March 4, 2013 - 1:00am Israel launched two Palestinians-only bus lines in the occupied West Bank on Monday, a step an Israeli rights group described as racist and which the Transport Ministry called an improvement in service. The left-wing Haaretz daily reported the ministry opened the lines, to be used by Palestinian labourers travelling between the West Bank and Israel, after Jewish settlers complained that Palestinians on mixed buses were a security risk. » Read more