Tel Aviv - Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said on Friday that he saw the current diplomacy by the US Middle East envoy leading to agreement within weeks on renewed peace talks with the Palestinians. "I get the impression there is a very intensive effort to start them," Barak told Israel's Channel One television as US President Barack Obama's envoy George Mitchell met Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas in the West Bank. "I imagine and I very much hope that maybe within the next two weeks we shall achieve indirect talks," he said. Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said after the Ramallah meeting that an Arab League committee to monitor peace efforts would meet in Cairo on May 1 to discuss "Mitchell's ideas." He did not elaborate, but earlier Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said any firm proposal to restart talks would have to be endorsed by Arab leaders. Direct peace negotiations between the sides collapsed in 2008, and Mitchell was on Friday trying to broker US-mediated indirect talks as a prelude to face-to-face negotiations. There was a generally upbeat tone to his meetings with other Israeli leaders. Despite a recent chill in relations with Washington, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he looked forward to working with Obama "to advance peace." "We're serious about it. We know you're serious about it. We hope the Palestinians respond," he told Mitchell. "We have to move this process forward." Netanyahu's office said the two had a "good meeting that dealt with kickstarting the peace process" and would meet again on Sunday.
