Rice will ask Israel to move 'to the next level' with PA

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will be keen on keeping alive the fledgling sense of momentum in the diplomatic process during a 24-hour visit to Israel and the Palestinian Authority beginning on Wednesday afternoon, government officials said in advance of her arrival.Rice will arrive from Jeddah,Saudi Arabia,where she and US Defense Secretary Robert Gates went after a meeting in Sharm e-Sheikh with Egyptian leaders and representatives of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council.The sense of momentum that Rice wants to build on stems from events since Hamas took over the Gaza Strip in June, and the steps that have been taken to create a PA in the West Bank that Israel can view as a partner.This will be Rice's first visit since March. Diplomatic officials said she was expected to ask Israel to continue taking steps to bolster PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas,in an effort to underline for the Palestinians the benefits of choosing moderate,rather than extremist,
leadership."What the US wants to see is a continuation of steps to strengthen the moderates, and the discussion here will deal with looking at other ways to do this,"one official said.He said that the idea was to look at ways to move the process from one of individual steps and gestures "up to the next level."
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