George Mitchell, the special United States envoy to the Middle East, said Thursday evening that it was too early to call his efforts to renew talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority a failure. In a speech at Colby College in his hometown of Waterville, Maine, the former senator repeated comments made earlier this month that the administration of President Barack Obama was deeply committed to the peace process.
Mitchell is expected in Israel next week for another round of talks between the two sides. He said "some good progress" was made this week in preparatory meetings with Israeli and PA negotiators. Following the visit, the envoy and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton plan to attend a conference in Morocco, where they will meet with foreign ministers from most or all of the Arab countries.