Nov 2, 2009, 16:21 GMT
Marrakech, Morocco - US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said on Monday that Washington continued to regard the Israeli settlements policy in Palestinian areas as illegitimate.
Clinton spoke to the press in the Moroccan city of Marrakech, where she was attending a regional conference called Forum for the Future.
The position of US President Barack Obama on settlements 'has not changed,' Clinton said, explaining that 'the United States does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements.'
The Israeli offer of restricting settlements, however, would have a 'significant' effect, she said.
Clinton praised Palestinian efforts to improve security in the West Bank.
She said she had advised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to respond to 'positive' Palestinian measures in kind.
Clinton's statement was interpreted by observers as a slight hardening of the US position on settlements, in line with the wishes of Arab countries.
The Forum for the Future brought together representatives of Middle Eastern, North African and industrialized countries.
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