Mideast quartet to meet in New York

Envoys from the quartet of Middle East negotiators will meet on Sunday in a "last-ditch push" to relaunch Israeli-Palestinian peace talks before September 20, the date when the Palestinian Authority (PA) will apply for the United Nations'' recognition of Palestine as an independent state, an EU diplomat said on Saturday. Envoys are meeting on Sunday in New York," the diplomat said. The European Union took note of the Palestinian bid to join the United Nations as a full member state, said Catherine Ashton, the EU High Representative-designate for foreign policy Catherine Ashton has earlier said. Reaching an early agreement by the parties to resume direct peace talks is the best way to implement peace in the Middle East, said Ashton. "A two- state solution is the only hope for lasting peace and security in the region," she added. "We will redouble our efforts together with our partners in the quartet to launch negotiations between the parties as soon as possible, she concluded. The efforts of the quartet made up of the EU, the US, Russia and the U.N, are part of the intense international diplomatic drive in recent weeks to block Palestinian UN bid.