German Foreign Minister to assess chances for peace deal in Mideast

Berlin - German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier plans to press for a speedy return to the Middle East peace process, his ministry said ahead of Steinmeier's departure for the region on Sunday evening. Steinmeier is due to spend two days in Israel, the Palestinian Territories, Syria and Lebanon, meeting with political leaders. German officials said the minister hoped to persuade neighbouring Arab states to take a more active role in diplomatic efforts to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. On Monday, Steinmeier is due to meet Israeli President Shimon Peres, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman in Jerusalem. A planned meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank town of Ramallah is not expected to take place because Abbas is visiting Jordan for talks on forming a Palestinian unity government with the Hamas movement. A key aspect of the discussions with Israel's conservative leadership is expected to be US and European Union calls for a halt to settlement construction in the occupied territories. Israel has offered a temporary freeze but has declined to put an outright stop to settlement expansion. Steinmeier, who is paying his 14th visit to the region since taking office in 2005, is also expected to push for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. On Sunday, Netanyahu referred for the first time to a 'two-state solution' in reference to efforts to bring peace to the Middle East. 'We have achieved a national agreement on the formula of two states for two peoples,' the prime minister said during the weekly meeting of the Israeli cabinet. Last month, Netanyahu allowed the possibility of a demilitarized Palestinian state without mentioning a 'two-state solution.' In Damascus, Steinmeier is expected to urge Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to play a more constructive role in helping to resolve the region's problems. Foreign Ministry sources said he intended to urge the Syrian leader to end support for the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon and loosen political ties with Iran. In Lebanon, the final stage of Steinmeier's tour, the minister is due to meet prime minister-designate Saad Hariri, son of former premier Rafik Hariri, who was killed in a bomb blast in 2005. Hariri's pro-western alliance won national elections in Lebanon held on June 7.