President Barack Obama said no matter how hard he tries, Israel and the Palestinians might give up on a U.S.-brokered peace deal.
Giving a surprisingly downbeat assessment April 13, Obama said peace remains a vital goal. But he says that U.S. pressure can’t succeed if the Israelis and Palestinians themselves conclude they don’t want an agreement.
The United States is pushing for new Israeli-Palestinian talks in which the United States would be a go-between.
Previous talks broke off more than a year ago, and the Obama administration has been unable to reach even the modest goal of new ones. — ap