Quartet urges support for new Mideast peace talks

Nations helping to shepherd the fragile Middle East peace process Friday urged all sides to work to shore up new negotiations and avoid any actions which could torpedo the talks.

The members of the so-called Quartet -- the European Union, the United Nations, Russia and the United States -- agreed to lend "effective support" to Israel and the Palestinians in their renewed peace talks back on track after a nearly three-year freeze.

The aim of the talks is to create two states living side by side, and Friday the delegations got a taste of the possible things to come.

Before the Quartet meeting at the United Nations building, the two seats at the head of the table bore the signs "Israel" and "State of Palestine."

But they were hastily removed before the delegations entered the room.

After Friday's talks, the Quartet in a statement "called on all parties to take every possible step to promote conditions conducive to the success of the negotiating process and to refrain from actions that undermine trust or prejudge final status issues."

US Secretary of State John Kerry joined his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov as well as Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erakat for the talks.

They reaffirmed a commitment to an ambitious timetable "to reach a permanent status agreement within the agreed goal of nine months."

 "The Quartet noted the importance of both sides demonstrating a commitment to improving the atmosphere for the negotiations, including through positive messages by the leaders," they said in their statement.