Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said that Israel and the Palestinians have never been as close to a lasting peace settlement as they are now.
He was speaking after a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and French President Nicolas Sarkozy in the margins of the Union for the Mediterranean summit in Paris.
Both Prime Minister Olmert and President Abbas agreed that French-led diplomacy is making headway in the Middle East.
Prime Minister Olmert said the French intervention added Europe's weight to the US-led effort to broker a deal before President George W Bush leaves office.
President Sarkozy, who is behind the new Union of the Mediterranean, said Europe could do more in the Middle East, including military guarantees of security - in other words the possible use of EU peacekeepers to oversee an Israeli-Palestinian accord.
Last night the French scored another success, when Syria and Lebanon agreed to open diplomatic relations for the first time.
Israel also signalled a willingness to begin direct talks with Syria.
However, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said it could take from six months to two years to reach a peace agreement with Israel if the parties, who have held indirect negotiations, are serious about direct talks.
'Signing a peace accord with Israel ... it's a question that requires six months to two years maximum if both parties are serious in engaging direct talks,' Assad said, speaking through a translator on France 2 television.
The Union for the Mediterranean - launched today and co-hosted by Sarkozy and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak - brings together 43 heads of state. The summit brings together EU, North African and Middle Eastern states to work on investment, trade and environmental projects.
