WASHINGTON: The Obama administration sought a new strategy for salvaging the US-led Middle East peace talks Friday, less than a week after dropping an effort to persuade Israel to impose a temporary freeze on some settlement activity. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton planned talks with senior officials from both sides in advance of an evening speech to a Washington think tank on the administration's plans for the way forward. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said the address would be a “broad-ranging review of all the dimensions of Middle East peace,” including the stakes for all sides and the cost of allowing the status quo to continue. Although the administration has failed to get the Israelis and Palestinians back to direct negotiations, Crowley denied that the process had unraveled. “We're definitely not back at square one,” he said. “We think we've built a foundation for what lies ahead.” Clinton was scheduled to meet with the Palestinian prime minister, the lead Palestinian negotiator, the Israeli defense minister, Israel's former foreign minister and the UN special envoy for the region. On Thursday, Clinton held lengthy talks with Israel's chief negotiator. The administration's special Mideast peace envoy will travel to the region next week. The effort comes just days after the US dropped its bid to persuade Israel to renew a freeze in West Bank settlement construction, a key Palestinian demand for returning to the talks stalled since an earlier slowdown expired in late September.
