Hoping to contain the backlash following the signing of international treaties by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian team is looking to restart negotiations by focusing on the issue of the borders of the Palestinian state. In a gesture that is also designed to save face among the Palestinian public and silence critics, Abbas will look to chart real progress and give his team time to get organized by pushing the deadline on talks back to summer 2015.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) had begun reaching the conclusion that a resumption of negotiations was necessary shortly after Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki handed UN Middle East envoy Robert Serry the applications signed by Abbas on April 1 to join 15 international treaties.
