Saeb Erekat said the Palestinians have yet to secure the nine votes needed from the 15-member council to set a deadline for Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank.
Whether or not the new, direct peace talks will be able to move from vague outlines to concrete resolutions remains to be seen. For now, merely having direct talks is an achievement, particularly for the United States and Israel.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Jewish settlement construction “undermines America’s unique ability to play a role” in the peace process and that the “status quo is unsustainable.”
