Middle East talks set to resume

After months of quiet US diplomacy, Israeli and Palestinian leaders appear poised to announce a resumption of direct peace talks, perhaps as early as this week.
Nearly two years after the last round of talks broke off, US and allied officials in recent days cleared the final hurdle by persuading Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to take a seat at the negotiating table, officials say.
The announcement will come as a relief for the Obama administration, which has had little to show for an 18-month slog on one of the president's top foreign policy priorities. Progress toward peace is viewed by Obama administration officials as key to building support in the Muslim world for other urgent US goals, including the war in Afghanistan, and the effort to halt Iran's nuclear program.
Yet the talks will begin in an atmosphere of deep pessimism.
Though Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he is ready to make "painful sacrifices" for peace, his government and the parliament, or the Knesset, may be among the most conservative in Israel. On the Palestinian side, Abbas' ability to deliver on an agreement is in question: The Hamas militant group, not his government, controls the Gaza Strip, where 1.5 million Palestinians live.
One measure of the pessimism surrounding the effort is the relative lack of attention that the approach of new, direct talks has received in the region.
Previously, for instance, the prospect of active negotiations would generate noisy demonstrations by Israelis worried about what their government would give up. This time, the protesters are staying home, analysts note.
Major issues, as in previous talks, will be the borders of a Palestinian state, Israeli security, the claims of Palestinian refugees and competing claims over Jerusalem.
One issue that is sure to be tougher this time around is security. Israel worries that rockets and other arms could be smuggled into a new Palestinian state in the West Bank, as they have been smuggled into Gaza.
Any deal would probably require, among other security provisions, that Israeli forces be allowed to stay in the West Bank during an extended transition period to gather intelligence and keep an eye on smuggling.